Steep Hills < Chicken Wings

Well, rest day has come and gone - and after putting it off for as long as I could, I finally got off my ass and went to the park to do a little sweating.

I only worked out for about 40 minutes tonight, but it wasn't endurance training I was going for. When feeling lazy, it's often best to choose efficiency as your guide. Cardio and strength training rolled into one came in the form of running up and down a very steep hill, NINE TIMES. I know, I should've gone for the big TEN - but may I remind you again that I was already feeling lazy?

I did eat really well today. Lots of fruit, a couple shakes, a chicken and brown rice bowl from Freshii - (possibly half a white chocolate & macadamia nut cookie from Starbucks, but we don't need to tell anybody about that). I must admit that I desperately miss chicken wings, and anything fried. Just the smell of the kitchen at my work sends my mouth watering and it's pretty annoying that all I can do is munch on celery and peanut butter while I'm working. Not good for the moral. Happiness often comes in the form of bacon - am I wrong?

I do feel stronger, and lighter on my feet - which will definitely help me run 21K, so I think things are going well. This is a picture of me flexing my giant muscles for you:

Tomorrow morning I will do a long run - I know, I keep saying "tomorrow I'll do a long run, bla bla bla" and then I do something like run up a hill instead.. But I mean it this time. I will long run in the morning before work and it'll be AWESOME. Just awesome. I need to get into the habit of running in the morning instead of at night because the marathon starts at 8:30 IN THE MORNING on race day. I wonder how much coffee is enough coffee to get me ready? Any suggestions?

Once again I'd like to remind you that it would mean THE WORLD if I could keep raising funds for The Renascent Foundation. So far we've raised 100$, we just need another $200 to meet our goal. Any little bit counts, so if you would like to make a donation, please click here. 

Its GO time

Alright, no more messing around kids. Race day is in exactly 19 days.

With each day that brings us closer, I am becoming surprisingly less scared, and more confident. After completing my 90 minute run last night, I am beginning to really believe I can do this. Last night, about halfway through my run I stopped for a moment to check my time. I was surprised to find that stopping made me feel worse, not better. When I was close to the end I realized that endurance wise, I was capable of going further - it was just my shins and a cramp in my side that made me want to stop.

This is crazy progress from a couple weeks ago when I did that bootcamp. I remember running around that park, and on my second lap I was winded. One of the things I'm learning is that pacing yourself is MEGA important. Oh, and being ok with pain is a big part of it too. Working through the pain, accepting it - these are things that help you reach a different level. In life we often go through things that can be highly uncomfortable, but if we can find a way to not run away from it - and work through it - it really does make us stronger.

I remember running past Lee's Palace last night through a crowd of people waiting to see a show, having smoke breaks - and they just stared at me like I was a crazy person dashing through them. My face was so hot and I'm sure it was crazy red and sweaty, and I was PROUD. Nothing beats that. I'm really digging this. Even if I bitch and moan and tell you that I'm feeling lazy, deep down I feel really good about this and I'm SO glad you are all commenting on Facebook and keeping me motivated.

Tonight I'm taking some time off running and going to stretch out my muscles at a hot yoga class. Tomorrow I will take a rest cause I'm all cramped up, but I plan to do a couple more 90 minute runs this week, and then next week Im aiming to do a few solid 2 hour runs. It sounds crazy. So ima BRING IT.

terrifying picture, as promised.

Photograph as promised. Post 90 minute 12.5K run, pre hot salt water soak. Told you it would be sweaty and terrifying. 

I'll tell you how it felt tomorrow. 

Goodnight. 

2 runs - 1 day

Hello everybody!

I've been bad. I've been very bad indeed.

I spent the weekend - as you know from previous posts - 'staycation-ing'.
Oh the glorious foods I ate and oh how nice my couch felt for most of it. I had frozen yogurt, and Thai food.. I watched movies, I had bacon and eggs for lunch. It really was quite nice.

But it's Monday - and that means back to business as usual. I woke up this morning a little late and decided that it was better to do SOMETHING than nothing at all, so with the little time I had before work I went for a run around the nearby track ( 5 times around ) and ran up and down a very steep hill a few times. While that got my heart pumping and the back of my neck nice and sweaty, I'm well aware that it's not enough to help me train for 21k in - gasp - less than 3 weeks.

In a couple of hours I will do a 90 minute run. I'm terrified.

Did you know in high school I made it into the yearbook as being the 'Best at Excuses'? I'm really great at coming up with reasons why I can't do something, or even better, that I shouldn't. For example, this morning I really had myself convinced that it was much too late in the morning to go for a run. That there was no point, because I wouldn't be able to go for long. I got to say that sometimes its better to NOT LISTEN TO YOURSELF. I keep training when I don't feel like training, and I never regret it. Ever.

So I guess the point of this blog post is to let you know that I'm still working at it, even though my posts are becoming less frequent. I will admit I've been slacking a little, but this week all of that will change.

Stay tuned for a post 90 minute run picture a little later this evening. I promise it will be inspiring, and likely a little frightening.

ALSO - I want to thank my friends John Edgar and Ken Wong for donating to the cause I'm running for. It is very near and dear to me, and it would mean the world if I could keep raising funds for The Renascent Foundation. If you would like to make a donation, please click here. 

Pac-Man Run

I know, I know, I haven't blogged in a couple days. I've been taking a little bit of 'me' time.

I've got some good news though. After my last post on Wednesday night, I woke up Thursday morning feeling super motivated. I jumped right out of bed eager to try out my new running shoes. I decided it would not be a long run, but a run where I tested my limits. During my runs over the past few weeks, I have allowed myself to stop for a few minutes here and there to catch my breathe, or stretch my extremely tight calves. On Thursdays run however, I wanted to push myself and I thought the best way to do that would be to not stop moving NO MATTER WHAT.

At every light, I changed direction and kept running. It made for a very interesting route - something Pac-Man would have enjoyed. Every time I wanted to stop, I reminded myself of my last blog post about pushing your limits. I want to thank everybody who's been reading my blog, because if it wasn't for you I would not have been worried about letting anyone down. The amount of views I've received since I started this blog is amazing (over 2,000) - and you guys hold me accountable. It's incredibly motivating.

Because I pushed my limits on that run, I made the best time I think I have so far - 4.5K in 25 minutes. I've set a new goal as a result. If I can run 5k in 20 minutes, then I could do 10k in 40 - which means I could do 20k in 1 hour and 20 minutes. I know that it may not work out that way, because we get more tired after more time running, and things can change along the way, but if I aim for the stars I can land on the moon, right?

Having support is really important. I neglected the blog for a couple of days and as a result I didn't run or train yesterday, and I don't plan to until tomorrow. I took the weekend off work and I am enjoying something called a 'Staycation' - its very trendy right now. So today is a day for R&R - but knowing that you guys are routing for me will get me back on my feet tomorrow.

Here is a sweaty picture of me after my last run. It's terribly unattractive - so maybe it'll give you a good laugh. Happy Saturday!

Check cheddar like a food inspector.

Can I tell you a secret?
Every time I think about going for run, there's a little voice in my head that says "you're not gonna make it homie". No joke, the voice in my head is a ride-till-you-die thug.

Seriously though, I know I will make it - regardless of how far I need to run, but there's always an asshole inside me tell me that I can't. I hate that little gangster. I posted this up on my fridge a while ago, before I even knew I was going to run a marathon, and I guess sub-consciously I knew I would need to look at it at some point to help me get/stay motivated.

That chick's arms are mental. Totes for real. 

There is definitely something to be said about raising the bar and pushing your limits. In anything that you do. Whether you run a marathon or knit a scarf or get a masters degree - most of us often only do what we have to. And while the bare minimum can suffice, it can also get boring. I'm guilty of it  - doing just enough to get by. What I'm learning through this challenge I've embarked on though, is that it's not necessarily about results. Pushing yourself because you CAN, and not because you HAVE TO, reaps a greater reward than an A+ or being first at the finish line. It's a golden slice of gratification only you can give yourself; it's pride, it's fulfillment, its satisfaction. And it makes you hella strong. 

You know what else is good? New shoes. No more shin splints, thank you very much. 

So tomorrow morning, I will lace up my new kicks, and I will push myself to raise the bar. And if I may, I suggest you do the same. Put on a pair of proverbial Nikes and kick ass at whatever you know you can kick ass at. Oh, and tell the little homie in your head that he/she couldn't bust a grape in a fruit fight. 

Ab Fab & The 75 Minute Run

I may be drinking a Diet Coke and watching So You Think You Can Dance right now instead of running, but that doesn't mean progress hasn't been made. I want to apologize for not posting yesterday, but in my defense I had a very busy day of training, and I just needed to crash at the end of it.

Yesterday was the day I was DREADING all week. In fact, I dreaded it so much that yesterday was actually supposed to happen on Sunday, but I flaked out because I couldn't commit. I'm talking about The 75 Minute Run. I began my day at the gym for some jump rope, incline running on the treadmill and an ab work out. It was too nice outside to not take advantage, so later in the day I went for a long bike ride. I napped for an hour around 8pm, woke up, downed a shake and met with Zoran for our first "long run". Long doesn't even begin to describe how that run felt.

When I ran a 10k last March, it took something like 58 minutes. That was the longest I had ever run, besides on a treadmill. Last night, with an almost perfect mix of Kasabian, Radiohead and Led Zeppelin on my iPod, the first 40 minutes felt fantastic. I thought to myself "hey! you're a runner! look at you go!" and then - my shins happened.

Now I don't know if it's normal to get shin splints from running for over an hour, or if I have particularly weak shins, or if my shoes are crap, but gosh darn-it THEY HURT. In any case, Zoran and I completed or 75 minute run (a total of 9.5K), and went to my place where he microwaved a slice of bacon and promptly ate it before I even saw it come out.

 Then we sat on my patio and had a cigarette. We're so smart.

I figure it's been a little over a week since I began the blog with a SCANDALOUS photo of my non-existent abs, so here is a follow up progress report in the form of iPhone photo:

I know you can't see them but I'm pretty sure there are muscles in my stomach somewhere. I felt one the other day, for a second. 

It's time for my beauty sleep. Which means I'm going to yell at my T.V for a little while and likely cry at some toilet paper commercials. 'Cause that's how I get down, yo.