Common Objects and Everyday Events

TIaRT- The Long and Short of It- Hi, J!

2009-11-12T16:18:00.001-05:00

This week's sponsor, Joanna of Yummy Running offers readers this question to ponder and respond to:

What is your favorite race? Do you live for the marathons or crave a 5k? Would you rather race in the morning, afternoon, or at night? Do you like big races with tons of people and encouraging crowds or do you prefer the smaller hometown races?

First of all… J! Your name is Joanna!!! My whole life has changed, hehe. This is what happens when you get to know people through their blogs.

Now to answer the question…

Well…I used to live for the short races, and now it just doesn’t seem like enough. Maybe that is because I’ve slowed down a little? LOL.

I want to get back to the shorter racing because I just feel like something is missing in my running life and I believe that is it. I’ve really focused on longer distance running ever since deciding to run the Eastern States 20-miler last March. I declared as soon as I crossed that finish line that I WOULD NEVER RUN A MARATHON but I was lying.

Just six months later I ran the Baystate Marathon in Lowell, MA and it wasn’t perhaps the best marathon I’ll ever run in my lifetime but it was the only first marathon I’ll ever run. I remember clouds and rain and puddles; passing people, getting passed, feeling the highs, feeling the lows, thinking I won’t make it, but making it anyway. A lot can happen in a really long run! And there’s something so satisfying about that run where you JUST KEEP GOING.

I’m not sure where I’m going right now. I have not officially decided to run Boston now that I’m qualified. I have to take some time to evaluate my running goals and find that fire. For the first time in a LONG time I don’t HAVE that fire inside to really push myself or break boundaries. I’m kind of coasting. We’ll see. My mom used to always say that and we joked that it meant No. In this case I think it really means we’ll see. Hah.

Happy Thursday!

Tuesday: Food, Inc. Review and Some Other Media…

2009-11-10T19:56:00.001-05:00

Elliot and I watched the movie Food, Inc. on Sunday morning. I was really surprised when Elliot told me he had ordered this movie On Demand to watch… I had heard about this film awhile back and I was pretty sure I would see it eventually. I just did not think Elliot would go out of his way to see it.

L: How did you choose this movie? I’m kind of surprised you would pick this.

E: I used Rotten Tomatoes. It got a 97%. <<insert OBVIOUSLY face>>. I try to use Rotten Tomatoes when I can… <<here is where he gets funny, prepare yourselves>> …That’s how I picked you!

HA. HA. HA. He is so funny.

So who has seen this movie? Thumbs up? Thumbs down?

Click HERE to go to the film’s site. Here is their official blurb:

In Food, Inc., filmmaker Robert Kenner lifts the veil on our nation's food industry, exposing the highly mechanized underbelly that has been hidden from the American consumer with the consent of our government's regulatory agencies, USDA and FDA. Our nation's food supply is now controlled by a handful of corporations that often put profit ahead of consumer health, the livelihood of the American farmer, the safety of workers and our own environment. We have bigger-breasted chickens, the perfect pork chop, herbicide-resistant soybean seeds, even tomatoes that won't go bad, but we also have new strains of E. coli—the harmful bacteria that causes illness for an estimated 73,000 Americans annually. We are riddled with widespread obesity, particularly among children, and an epidemic level of diabetes among adults.

Featuring interviews with such experts as Eric Schlosser (Fast Food Nation), Michael Pollan (The Omnivore's Dilemma, In Defense of Food: An Eater's Manifesto) along with forward thinking social entrepreneurs like Stonyfield's Gary Hirshberg and Polyface Farms' Joel Salatin, Food, Inc. reveals surprising—and often shocking truths—about what we eat, how it's produced, who we have become as a nation and where we are going from here.

My thoughts: Overall, it was what I expected it to be. My logical response is to just continue what I am doing. I don’t eat a lot of meat, I read labels, I buy often at a local farmer’s market, and I try to use my purchasing power positively.

I appreciated seeing Eric Schlosser since I read and enjoyed his book Fast Food Nation. And I MORE than appreciated that there was a huge segment devoted to Gary Hirshberg who hails from New Hampshire and is the dad of one of my brother’s close friends. Yeahhh Stonyfield, reppppresenT.

Elliot and I both liked the farmer in the cowboy hat:

Also known as Joel Salatin.

He fought claims that his meat slaughtered in “open air” was contaminated but when tested against factory meat Salatin’s actually had lower levels of whatever it was they were testing.

Elliot mentioned he liked that guy and what he stood for because he really BELIEVED in what he was doing. It’s a pretty striking comparison to make- this guy out in the sunshine with his pigs and chickens to the hanging carcasses traveling around on metal hooks- the mass produced artificially grown meat you get from behind tightly closed doors. Efficient, but safe? Mass, but moral? I don’t know. I’m not a food production expert, but I can definitely get behind sanitation and safety issues.

Elliot writes in with his review…

In the beginning of the 20th century Upton Sinclair wrote a book called The Jungle that accidentally caused wide-scale food industry reform. Food Inc's creators tried to do it again at the beginning of the 21st. The film is interesting, enjoyable and occasionally moving. But it's not a revolution. Rather, it's a summary of an already existing movement. A sign of the times.

Those of us who care are well aware that generic brands are mass produced crap whether its processed grains or meat. It's not coincidence that Whole foods has grown 8 times larger into a $4 billion company over the last 2 decades or that Trader Joes has gone from 1 store near me in Boston to 4 since I moved here 7 years ago. For some time there has been wholesome green environmentally conscious non-processed movement already afoot and folks are buying. A show like Biggest Loser is probably doing more to further it in mainstream American living rooms than this somewhat pretentious film ever will. But for an interesting and more complete picture of our food production, this is an excellent choice. The films least sensational but perhaps most significant points come about the effect of farm subsidies on relative costs of healthy foods at the grocery store and the potential effects of Monsanto's patenting of seed.

So! That is that. And now I have some songs to share with you.

First song. I actually liked this awhile back but then heard it again as it is on a TV Show Elliot wants to watch, starting tonight. V is the name of the show. Yep… V. Really, like I need anymore television shows on my schedule. LOL. Anyway. I checked out the show’s site and this song played in the preview. NICE. I also like that the main character is one of the girls from Firefly which is the show Elliot and I LOVED but has since been discontinued. Okay, okay, the song already, right? Muse: Uprising.

…We will be victorious!…

Second song. I heard this on the radio and immediately liked it. Timbaland and Nelly Furtado: Morning After Dark.

I can’t find the official video anywhere and the album isn’t actually released until November 23.

Get this, Timbaland wanted the Twilight cast for this song’s video! Read:

To fit with its vampire theme,Timbaland opened up about his desire to have "Twilight" cast starring in a music video for his new single "Morning After Dark". He said in an interview with MTV over the weekend at Justin Timberlake & Friends concert in Las Vegas, "I want the same characters of 'Twilight,' which I've almost got."
Timbaland explained further about the storyline of the video should he get Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart for the leading characters. He stated, "We [Timbaland & SoShy] would protect her while he goes away from the other dude (Jacob) and the other people (the Cullens)."
Saying that "you won't know what we are. You don't know if we're vampires, but we are something," he added, "We was his last hope, he wouldn't want to use us, the whole thing. If [Edward] calls us it would be a big payback - a big price to pay to call my team of people to protect her. It's a whole little story line."
Timbaland also hinted possibility of him writing a sequel for the song. "And I have part two to the single too, so it's like a whole little story line to it," the powerhouse producer/rapper shared.
"Morning After Dark" is the first single taken from Timbaland's forthcoming studio album "Shock Value 2". The track features his newly-signed French artist SoShy and has been debuted by Ryan Seacrest on his radio show last week.
"Shock Value 2" is going to be released in U.S. on November 23. Beside having SoShy, it will also be supported by Justin Timberlake, Miley Cyrus, Lady GaGa, Kings of Leon, Paramore, Estelle, Jay-Z, Missy Elliott,The Neptunes, Jonas Brothers, DAUGHTRY, Hollywood Undead, Keri Hilson, Usher and Chris Brown.

Source: http://www.aceshowbiz.com/news/view/00028122.html

Yes, I will admit that I LOVE Twilight. Those books were … addicting!!

The first movie was kind of disappointing but I didn’t really even care. I am looking forward to the next movie because I was always rooting for Jacob. Heh.

Monday Hurts So Good.

2009-11-09T11:30:00.001-05:00

I was not at all sore on Sunday from the previous day’s 12-miler. But Monday morning comes around HELLOoooOOo glutes and hammies. I spent a good chunk of Sunday doing a yoga video, part of a Pilates video, and then biking and lifting. I’m guessing some sort of combination of all of that worked my muscles in new ways.

It’s incredible what a total body workout you can get by NOT RUNNING. I’m not even sure what exactly about Sunday’s assorted cross-training put me over the edge of soreness, but I like it. I like that I’m literally just sitting at my work computer and I can FEEL my butt muscles.

So here’s the Sunday that brought on the hurt:

Core Workout (section 1) of this Cardio Pilates video-

I might’ve kept going with this video, but it’s a library borrow and after the core section it skips and restarts back at the beginning. LOL.

So I swapped in a yoga video and did Sun Salutations and Standing Postures (section 1 and 2) of this Yoga video-

I love this one! It is super easy to follow and they all have Australian accents! Heh.

Then I got to the gym just 50 minutes before closing so I hopped on the bike for a solidly sweaty 30 minutes and then raced through some free weights exercises:

Dumbbell Chest Press- 25lbs 2sets 15reps
Dumbbell Row- 25lbs 2sets 12 reps
Bicep Curl-rotate-Shoulder Press- 20 lbs 8 reps, 15 lbs 10 reps
Bicep Curl- 15 lbs 10 reps
Shoulder Press- 15 lbs 10 reps
Tricep Dip- 2 sets 15 reps

And…done.

I did NOT want to wake up this morning. I think I could’ve stayed in bed all day. But the sun was shining by the time I talked myself into getting up and I went for a 4-mile run to get my blood circulating. I think this is a good soreness recovery strategy. Nothing strenuous, of course. I told myself to go as slow as I wanted. The sun was practically blinding me, too! The weather is incredible. November 9th and 55 degrees! Wow!

MON am Recovery Run

Total Distance: 4 miles

Total Time (get this!): 33:33 (lol)

Average Pace: 8:23 min/mi

Splits: 9:06, 8:19, 8:14, 7:53

Notes: I’m really glad I went. It wasn’t easy and I could’ve skipped the run altogether, but I’m much less sore now and my mood is super sunny.

I will leave you with a few photos from Saturday’s shenanigans. I started a Rock Paper Scissors tournament out at the bar and it really caught on! I love it!

In case you are new, I’m the one in the blue!

Bring on the work week! Happy Monday everyone!

Happy Saturday...

2009-11-07T14:34:00.003-05:00

First things first: I do NOT recommend you see Men Who Stare at Goats. But seriously, keep on watching that trailer. Hahaha... the trailer is so good and the movie just was not. Oh, well, it was fun to go anyway.

Second: I'm posting directly from blogger so please excuse any formatting blips.

So what am I doing now? Watching the following music video on repeat... I have this secret fascination with 3oh!3, I guess it's the teeny-bopper in me coming out. Not so secret anymore!

Besides I am happy to just sit here for now since I had an AWESOME 12 mile run earlier this afternoon. I just took an ice bath so I'm all bundled up now listening to music. The only thing I can think to complain about is that my heels are numb. Oh well! Worse things have happened.

I finally found a happy place on my run today. There was a point when I wasn't even thinking about how far I'd gone, how far I had to go, or how I felt. I was just enjoying myself. The sun was out and I ran along Comm Ave, which has this great side-road that runs parallel to the main road. It's a 1-way residential road with sidewalks and I think every single family in the area was out for a walk. It was like a flood of pea-coats. Haha.

SAT LONGer RUN
Total Distance: 12 miles
Total Time: 1hr:31minutes
Average Pace: 7:36 min/mi
Splits: 8:09, 7:42, 7:41, 7:51, 7:30, 7:30, 7:20, 7:34, 7:38, 7:17, 7:37, 7:26
Notes: The first half of this out and back had a TON of uphills. Which means I ran them as downhills on the way back. At first I felt like a slacker but then I told myself: hey, you EARNED these downhills. I crammed in Chestnut Street HILL and Heartbreak HILL in the first half of the run. All in all it was a great day, and a good 12 miles.

Elliot is gone fishing and touring around in Rhode Island somewhere with our friend Andy. So I have the house to myself for now. Alriiiiight Dirty Dancing just came on TV. Hehe. Catch you on the flip side...

More Than a Feeling! IT’S FRIDAY! There’s a beer with your name on it… and how I am a Hebert.

2009-11-06T12:17:00.001-05:00

LOL> Watch the preview for this movie I am seeing with Elliot tonight.

It might just be my sense of humor but I think it looks hilarious! And I love the cast. And that song! More than a feeling…

Yesterday I pulled out some inner strength and showed up at the gym after work instead of heading home to hide under the covers. I always get tired toward the end of the work day but usually once I’m in motion I can roll right along. I emailed Elliot for some get-going motivation and he wrote back:

ummm well i think you will be disappointed in yourself if you don’t go so it would easier to just go now and avoid feeling bad later

That is pretty sound advice. Thank you Elliot!

Gym it is…

THURS pm Gym

Warm-Up with some Cardio: I biked steadily along while reading a 3-month old In Style Magazine. LOL. Need any fashion advice? I’m probably not the one to ask.

Then I did the following lifting and core workout:

Dumbbell Bench Press- 2 sets 25lb x15

Dumbbell Bicep Curl-rotate-Shoulder Press- 1 set 20 lbs x10, 2 sets 15 lbs x12

Calf Raises- 3 sets 15lbs x40

Tricep Dips- 3 sets x15

Step-Ups- 3 sets 8lbs x10

Dumbbell Row- 3 sets 25lb x12

Bench Seated Knee Up+Toe Touches 3 sets x20

Row Boat 2 sets x20

Pyramid Crunches:

10 traditional crunch,10 traditional crunch+knees up,10 simultaneous crunch+knees up,10 traditional crunch+knees up,10 traditional crunch

Side Oblique Raises 2 sets x20

Bicycle 1 set x20 each side

Forearm Planks 3 sets x1-minute

I still beat Elliot home (I am lucky to work and workout exactly two miles from home- I joined a gym next door to my work building- I highly recommend this!).

At home I showered and checked my email. Elliot has been working really long hours lately and while he was finishing up at work he sent me this email:

I want stella artois

That was the subject of the email and the body was blank. LOL.

So… here’s what I did!

Hehehe… It says Elliot, but I had a hard time getting his whole name in the picture. Just take my word for it!

And so when he got home I told him there was a beer with his name on it in the fridge! Ohhh… goodness. This is what happens when your inner child is of the drinking age.

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And now… IT’S FRIDAY!!!! Hooray !!!

This morning I got up and hit the road for four miles. I didn’t even realize until I got back, but I wore my GYM sneakers, that I had brought inside with me from the night before. WHOOPS! I keep my old Nike Air Alaris sneaks in the car so I have them to cross-train and lift at the gym. Buuut, apparently I run in them again, too. They are so last year. Heh.

FRI am RUN

Total Distance: 4 miles

Total Time: 31:54

Average Pace: 7:58 min/mi

Splits: 8:30, 7:57, 7:51, 7:34

Notes: Again my legs were feeling not so speedy. I tried to push through the sluggliness (I just made up that word and it totally describes the feeling! hehe). But instead of getting frustrated over the feeling, I just went with it. Why not? I’m not really worried about performance right now. Just go. Do what you can. What can you do today? That’s sort of my current OP. I BELIEVE that I am on the path to better racing. Where is this confidence coming from? Who knows, but I like it.

Tomorrow it is my friend Sara B’s birthday so a big group is getting together to celebrate! We’re going to the Cheesecake Factory at the Prudential. You can bet your booty there is a Mojito with my name on it!!!! Hehe. And then we’ll be going out for some nighttime shenanigans. I am bringing my camera and will for sure take some photos.

I already know what I’m getting for food at C.F., too! I always get the same thing because I like it that much!!!!! Want to guess?????

Here’s the menu, and I will even narrow it down for you because I am nice and their menu is out of control extensive: CHEESECAKE FACTORY Salads MMM!

They also have a really great bread basket with this brown oatmeal studded bread that is DEEELISH! I take after my Dad and always ask our waiter/waitress to bring extra bread. It’s freeeee. I am pretty sure every diet in the book tells you to send the bread back first thing, but that is just not the Hebert-Family-Way!!! LOL. It’s funny when you look at the habits you grew up with and the advice you are given as an adult that might contradict everything you are used to.

Specifically this is a small point, but in general BEYOND the bread basket this applies. I know most of the values and principles I STILL hold in my heart come from my parents and growing up in our family. I was lucky to have such great role models and rules to follow. Awwww.

Yes, I have grown and changed, and I certainly have my very own (and sometimes stubborn) ideas about things. But at the core I am a Hebert through and through. Have I yet posted my favorite Hebert-isms? Well here they are anyway:

Early is on time.
Get the job done: do what has to be done, when it has to be done, and do it that way every time.
Nothing good ever happens after midnight.
Practice, practice, practice.
If you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say it.
No matter how many shots you miss, keep shooting. Shooters have to shoot.
Write it down.
Give each problem its own page.
Always, always, always say thank you.

What are some of your heart-of-hearts rules to live by?

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And before I get back to work, here are a few answers to your questions!

1. What degree are you going for?

Boston University Masters Mental Health Counseling and Behavioral Medicine

Antioch University Masters Clinical Mental Health Counseling

Boston College Masters Mental Health Counseling

Lesley University Masters Counseling Psychology

2. Do you track calories, protein, carbohydrates, etc.?

I do currently track calories—in my handy –dandy reporter’s notebook! I started this on November 1st. I aim for 1600-1900 per day take-home. So sometimes I am eating upper 2000s if I am working out more. I do not track protein and carbs, but I eat very balanced meals and this isn’t something I am worried about. I make sure to get fruits + veggies with every meal. I eat cottage cheese, Greek yogurt, and eggs on daily basis, so I am confident I have my protein requirements covered. I don’t cut carbs either, so I’m sure my carb intake is solidly filled- I eat oatmeal as my breakfast base every day, and sandwiches as part of lunch most days. Occasionally I eat beans as part of dinner- I love the Cannelini (white bean) variety.

Any other questions? I love getting them, so feel free to ask away. I’m an open book…

Perhaps it should be revised… an open blog???

HAPPY FRIDAY!!!!

TIaRT – Picking the Gold Standard- Hi, Chelsea! And what I’ve been doing…

2009-11-05T11:06:00.001-05:00

Chelsea of Early Runner is this week's sponsor and she offers readers this question to respond to:

You’re on the selection Committee for the Nobel Prize for Running. Who would you nominate for the winner and why?

It could be an elite or a beginning runner....a courageous ordinary runner in your community who inspires you.... or the local running club leader, race director, or running store owner who gives tirelessly back to running. It could be the senior runner in your community who knows no age limitations.

You decide. Who do you think deserves to be recognized for enriching and advancing the experience of running for others.

Hands down I’m going with the one woman whose writing really swept me up in a distance running whirlwind: K.V. Switzer. She was just so determined and she certainly didn’t have an easy path to follow. It’s like when it snows and someone else walks in it first and then you can step where they stepped and you might not get as much snow down your boots.

Anyway, I’ve posted about her before, and if you check out my sidebar under Running—> you can see my favorite blurbs from her book.

Read her book if you haven’t:

I’ve been forging ahead testing my own limits lately. I haven’t been working particularly HARD, (track workouts and true tempo runs come to mind) but I have been trying to balance my output with my intake, which I am realizing is probably the key to losing weight- especially if you are already in pretty good shape. I think my body likes being 130 pounds and in the first week I saw no changes.

Dangit Biggest Losers for painting an unrealistic picture of weekly weight-loss in my mind!!!

My goals are much less lofty than those of someone who might be overweight. Instead of 20, 30, 40 pounds all I want is a measly 5 to 10. That should be easy, right? Well, it hasn’t been so far. LOL. To that end I am writing down everything I eat which has actually not been as much of a pain in the butt as I thought it might be. I have done this before here and there and hopefully I stick with it long enough to meet my get fit weight loss goals. I have this neat little Reporter’s Notebook and I feel a little bit like Harriet the Spy:

I had been a little under my intake ceiling for a couple of days and last night I reeeeeeally wanted MORE. I had a small bowl of cereal after dinner and wasn’t sure how to handle still wanting to eat more. Then Elliot called to tell me he was getting a smoothie at UFood and did I want one? Well they have great smoothies and I decided that a 400 calorie banana-peanut butter smoothie could fit into my budget. It was a planned treat and I really enjoyed it! I also didn’t feel like I needed to keep snacking after I had this, I was done for the day and still on target for my intake range. Not bad! I don’t need one of these treats every day, but gosh it was delicious last night!

Here are my workouts, and the theme is what can you do today?

TUES My Kind of Tri

Leg 1: Bike at the gym- 30 minutes- moderate intensity

Leg 2: Lift at the gym- I added step ups with a knee level bench and I actually got winded doing these with 8lb weights!

Leg 3: 5-mile run! Because…I had to return two movies and decided to jog them over. Then I was already out and .75 mile deep, so why not just do my usual 4-mile loop?

Total Distance: 5 miles

Total Time: 42:24

Average Pace: 8:28 min/mi

Splits: 9:33, 8:40, 8:05, 7:39, 8:25

And then when I got home I did some core work. WHOA Tuesday! I felt pretty good having done all of that. Oh, and I got the movies returned, too! Check.

WEDS Out and Back

Total Distance: 6 miles

Total Time: 46:47

Average Pace: 7:47 min/mi

Splits: 8:30, 7:50, 7:33, 7:36, 7:55, 7:22

Notes: This run was tough. The effort level was high and I had to talk myself into a strong finish.

And this morning I got up and ran along my 4-mile loop and decided to head up a hill and found a secret side street that looped back around to my route. So 4 miles turned into 7 miles. Nice. I was starting to get antsy and tired of running around 3 miles, too, so tricking myself into some extra miles really worked!

THURS AM Run

Total Distance: 7 miles

Total Time: 54:39

Average Pace: 7:48 min/mi

Splits: 8:23, 7:48, 7:36, 7:40, 7:45, 7:40, 7:45

Notes: Yep it was hard again. My legs feel a little sluggish. But it’s not the end of the world and I’m logging miles which makes me happy. Eventually I’ll get back into some exciting speed work.

Here’s a look at my updated goal lists:

Lean Mean Fighting Machine Goals

Goal A: Lose 5lbs

Goal A+: Lose 10lbs

Week 1- Sunday 11.1.09- 130

Week 2- Sunday 11.8.09- tba

Grad Apps Goals

~~Write Personal Statement~~

~~Send to Readers and Make Revisions~~

~~Update and Revise Resume~~

~~Request Transcripts from Midd~~

~~Print and Mail form, with money~~

~~Distribute Recommendation Requests~~

Write supplemental statements

Complete Online Applications

Request to send GRE and Psych GRE scores

Find Miller Analogy Test time and location

Register for MAT

Practice MAT

Take MAT and send scores

Talk to my coordinator at work about continuing work on my projects here while taking classes next year

Getaway Going Going Goooone Goals

~~Plan Long Weekend Vermont Trip with Elliot~~
- ~~Dorset B+B- booked~~
- ~~Middlebury- booked~~
- ~~Burlington- booked~~
~~Plan New Year’s Trip to Denver with the Girls~~

~~Flights- booked~~

It is almost hilarious how my grad app goal list continues to extend itself even as I continue to cross things off. I am finding more and more things I need to do for each application! Gah! Now it is just a matter of time…

This is my kind of Time!

Happy Thursday!!!

Alex Guest Post: My 10,000 Day Birthday

2009-11-03T21:44:00.001-05:00

8:58 AM on November 5, 2009 will be exactly 10,000 days from the moment I was born.

I think we should all take moment to think about how cool that is. It's an arbitrary date in the scheme of the time measurements we normally follow: a little less than 27 and half years. Nothing really notable. Put in the context of days: a beautiful date. I came to the realization that this day was soon coming in my life by messing around the computational search engine Wolfram Alpha. It was mere coincidence that this website came up a few months before my 10,000 day birthday, and that I figured that date out, and that I remembered to celebrate it. I will be in NYC with Lindsey Jacobson. I am writing this in order to put forward the plan to make 10,000 day birthdays a day celebrated by every American.

Also, I think this might secretly be a push for a switch to the metric system. There are no other landmarks between the age of 25 and 30. Therefore, I feel this is a more than suitable candidate. Thinking about having lived for 10,000 days brings to mind, to me at least, how crazy it is that we live our lives day in and day out over such a long period without really thinking about how much time that really is. We can say that we have lived a certain amount of time in years. That doesn't fully emphasize how long a period it is. Years are an abstract thought. I don't think we can fully think about all the things that happen in such a long period of time. A single day is absolutely something I can get my head around. Multiply that by 10,000, add in the lack of milestones in that age range, and you've got yourself a reason to go to NYC and get wild.

I have sympathy for all you old folks out there that missed the opportunity to celebrate your 10,000 day birthday. I also encourage you young people out there to add yours to your calendar. Go to Wolfram Alpha, and type in your birthday "plus 10,000 days". It'll figure it out for you.

Running… with no real destination.

2009-11-03T12:42:00.001-05:00

That sort of sums up my running lately. I have a general idea of how far or where I might go, but it often evolves. I know this is because I don’t have a training plan or any preset workouts. I run based on how I feel.

I will probably make a schedule in the next day or two, not for any race in particular, but just to have a running goal for each day.

And of course this will help me get back to the track.

Any track-lovers out there have favorite workouts? Also… how many track workouts per week do you recommend? If I can do two or three, what should I do and what days should I do it?

All ideas are welcome!!!!! Thank you!

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Catching up.

On Sunday I set out for a run… and you guessed it I had no idea where I would go or how far. I kind of wanted to run 10-15 miles which is part of my get fit goal.

Buuut, I hit 3.5 miles and I was just not into going much further. So I turned around and headed back toward home. I was feeling a little blah. My legs felt heavy and tired and I was bored.

So I compromised with myself and said, if you are going to call it a day at 7 miles instead of adding on a loop, see if you can pick up the pace for these last two miles and run faster instead of farther.

So I gritted my teeth and broke through the boredom. It was hard and I wanted to stop, but something amazing happened. I felt BETTER after running two miles at an uncomfortable pace. I flipped a switch in my head and gained some positivity. I said to myself, great job! You did something productive, that was almost like a tempo. Way to go.

And all of a sudden I could keep going. So I did. I slowed down and took it easy, at that point I was just happy to be logging the miles I wanted from the get-go. I had no idea where I was going but I just kept running and went straight instead of turning back toward home. I ended with 11 miles. And I ran it THIRTEEN minutes faster than my last 11-miler. LOL.

SUNDAY LONG-ISH RUN

Total Distance: 11 miles

Total Time: 1hr:25.09

Average Pace: 7:44 min/mi

Splits: 8:33, 7:37, 7:28, 7:34, 7:23, 7:11, 6:41, 8:11, 7:58, 8:10, 8:22

And on Monday evening I went out for a four mile run. Well I didn’t know it was going to be four miles, but that is what it was.

MONDAY 4-MILER

Total Distance: 4 miles

Total Time: 31:32

Average Pace: 7:51 min/mi

Splits: 8:43, 7:55, 7:37, 7:14

Notes: I had some twinges in my quad and ankle. I feel a little on the edge of an injury for some reason. I need to be careful and work hard smartly and selectively.

I came home and did a yoga-video that was fun.

This video:

I am borrowing it from the library!

I did 20ish minutes until they got into shoulder stands and the fish pose. Then I decided I wanted to go take a shower. Hehe. Actually spending even 20 minutes doing this really relaxed me. I have not had a lot of success with at home yoga, I just sort of lose interest. But I liked this video and it was easy to follow along… with the exception of the whole special breathing thing. That really stresses me out because I can’t do it and I don’t really believe I ever will be able to.

This is what the instructor was trying to explain and I am supposed to do this???

Ujjayi breath

1. Inhale and exhale deeply through the mouth.

2. On the exhales, begin to tone the back of the throat, slightly constricting the passage of air. Imagine that you are fogging up a pair of glasses.

3. Once you are comfortable with the exhale, begin to apply the same toning of the throat to the inhales. This is where the name of the breath comes from: it sounds like the ocean.

4. When you are able to control the throat on both the inhale and the exhale, close the mouth and begin breathing through the nose. Continue applying the same toning to the throat that you did when the mouth was open. The breath will still make a loud noise coming in and out of the nose. This is Ujjayi breath.

Hmmmm…

Well that’s what I have for you today.

Tomorrow there will be a guest post on Objects and Events, courtesy of our friend Alex. He has been a frequent guest poster here at O&E. I think of him as a drastically different point of view, which is always an enjoyable departure from my usual suspects posts.

You can read his previous guest posts here (Dirty Jerz Trip), here (Turducken- it’s that time of the year again!), here (Convenience Store Robbery), here (Tiny Laptop), here (Free Cell), here (Quitting Smoking?), and here (G-chat).

WHAT will he come up with next…??? Check back tomorrow to find out.

Have a great Tuesday!

Boston’s Vegetarian Food Festival! And the rest of Halloween…

2009-11-02T11:16:00.001-05:00

Elliot and I started our Halloween day at Boston’s FREE 14th Annual Vegetarian Food Festival!

This place was PACKED. In addition to free samples galore, many of the vendors had foods for purchase.

Elliot got me a spring roll, awww.

And then I taste-tested my way around the rest of the place…

Pure Bars-

Raw Revolution Bars- I took one of each. I think I liked them. Elliot called them more moist than Lara bars, but they were actually on the slimy side! Maybe the agave nectar? They still tasted amazing, but the sliminess was a little icky.

Amazon Acai Juice-

Hemp Nut Butter- yes it was green!

Some ‘Shrooms-

Coffee-

Amazing Grass-

I went back for seconds of a strawberry-banana mini Hemp Milk Shake-

PB&Co tried to get me to go for the spicy Jalepeno PB but I panicked at the last minute and said “Uh, uhh,…Bees Knees please!” LOL.

Super-shiny Hummus-Pita Chip package-

Best deal on books ever!

Unfortunately we couldn’t stay as long as I would have liked. This was a two day event with speakers and demonstrations, and even comedians lined up. Next year I will make more of a point to spend some time here. I would love to sit in on the talks. Can’t beat free!

This year Elliot and I had somewhere to be… we had front row tickets to the BC Football game versus Central Michigan! So we booked it out of the food fest and beat feet to BC.

Did I mention that it was 70+ degrees?

We met our friend Andy at the game and just generally enjoyed ourselves.

I spotted plenty of costumes, that would come with being on a college campus of course. These guys were super entertaining…

Did you see the green guys? They were in full body green spandex suits… LOL.

GO BC! It was a great game. BC absolutely stomped the competition.

The sun went down in the second half and suddenly our beautiful day game was a just as fabulous night game under the lights. Best of both worlds!

After the game, Elliot and I made our way home and just in time!

We had our first ever trick-or-treaters! FOUR of them. Hehe.

Instead of dressing up and throwing down we had a pretty relaxed rest of our night. We got a movie and just kicked back. Have you ever seen this?

Well I am going to go ahead and tell you- it is SAD!

The end came around and even though I had almost entirely guessed what was going to happen, I still CRIED my eyes out. Good golly I was seriously sobbing. I held on to the box of tissues and just sat there streaming tears and using tissue after tissue. The last movie I remember crying that much was Brian’s Song. If you haven’t seen that movie, it is a much watch.

And that was Halloween 2009! What was the best costume you saw over the weekend???

If you missed my marathon photos, click here!

Pictures from the Marathon!

2009-11-02T09:44:00.001-05:00

This is probably my favorite picture, coincidentally (lol) taken when I was feeling my best at mile 13! I saw my parents and BOOM energy burst:

And here I am crossing the finish line. Glad my Dad got this shot! I was sooo happy to be done!

And here I am with my parents, my cape, and my medal:

IT’S NOVEMBER! Craaaaaazy.

I have a weekend recap coming up for you.

CONGRATS to all the NYC Marathoners! I have a friend in town who ran and she finished in a 7:46 min/mile pace! Wow!! I want to do that…

TIaRT – My Very Own Genie – Hi, Julia!

2009-10-29T15:47:00.001-04:00

This week's sponsor is Julia, author of her blog,Chocolate Shoestrings.

Julia knows all runners have dreams and wishes, so she invites us to share ours.

Julia asks:

If a genie were to appear and grant you any three running wishes in the world, what would you choose? It can be anything from superhuman powers, new running inventions, race entries, shoes, you name it!

What would be your three wishes?

I would love to have Robin Williams as his Genie self show up on my doorstep… Actually I already have him in my car! He sits right in front of the shift-thingy (I know a LOT about cars huh). I got this little guy from my sister:

I like to think he brings me good luck!

My three running wishes are as follows:

NO INJURY- and no fear of ever getting one.
UNLIMITED FREEBIES AT A RUNNING STORE- free of charge for all apparel, shoes, and accessories.
SPEED GAINS- to beat all my PRs.

Okay Genie, work your magic.

Here are some of my runs lately!

TUES AM RUN

Total Distance: 3 miles

Total Time: 24:14

Average Pace: 8 min/mi

Splits: 8:57, 8:01, 7:07

Notes: Well I actually thought I was running 4 miles, and it is funny because I forgot that my turn-around point was actually just the 1.5 mile mark. And WHILE I was running I even thought to myself wow that is the shortest feeling mile ever! LOL. Well that explains that. I am still trying to speed up my runs so I tried to beat myself each successive mile. That is my current strategy and it is turning into a habit.

WEDS AM RUN

Total Distance: 4 miles

Total Time: 30:03

Average Pace: 7:31 min/mi

Splits: 8:10, 7:40, 7:16, 6:56

Notes: I made up for the Tuesday miscalculation. I hadn’t planned on running consecutive days, but I felt good, woke up, and actually wanted to run. I am really lucky I don’t have to be at work early these days so I have some extra time to run without waking up too early. I felt good on this Weds run, too, except for the last .2 miles. Whooo-boy when I turned the corner of my street with .2 miles to go I honestly started hyperventilating!! I was working hard to get my pace down.

THURS AM RUN

Total Distance: 8 miles

Total Time: 1hr:01.22

Average Pace: 7:40 min/mi

Splits: 8:20, 7:53, 7:27, 7:27, 7:29, 7:15, 7:49, 7:42

Notes: This was a why not kind of run. I wanted to go and I wanted to go that far. I had a turn around spot in mind, so I just ran to it. I was working really hard to keep my pace in the mid-7s, so I talked to myself about it in my head as I was running and decided to run hard through mile 6, since that is farther than I had gone for the past two runs, and then use the last 2 miles as cool down. I didn’t legitimately cool-down, as you can see I kept my pace sub-8, but I definitely stopped any serious pace pushing.

THANK YOU all for your feedback on my goals and plans! I love having an organization scheme to refer back to! And your comments will continue to re-inspire me as well.

Happy Thursday!

THE REST OF LIFE… Action Packed!

2009-10-28T13:22:00.001-04:00

It is that time…

to make PLANS plans PLANS!!!

Who’s excited????

First up, END OF 2009 GOALS.

BEFORE THE NEW YEAR I WILL FOCUS ON THE FOLLOWING…

Lean Mean Fighting Machine Goals

Goal A: Lose 5lbs

Goal A+: Lose 10lbs

The Course- Lift and core every other day. Shorter faster runs during the week. Doubles if I wake up in time to run. Walk every day at lunch. Start back at the track next week. Mid-range long run every weekend (10-15 miles). Go to bed earlier. Cut out extra snacks.

Side Note- I don’t need to lose weight, but it will definitely make me faster and more confident. I’m 5’8” and 130lbs right now. I feel a little heavier than race weight, which is my ultimate goal. My lowest weight was 118 back when I first started college and I lost 30lbs over the course of that first fall. I was killing myself to be in the best shape for basketball and I took “being healthy and fit” to the extreme. I have to say it did work, I could outrun any girl on that court.

So often when a GIRL says she wants to lose 5-10 lbs (and I will be the first to admit this is a pretty cliché and common statement) everyone is quick to say, No you don’t need to lose weight! Or, Uh oh she’s obsessed. But no one considers the fact that if she’s active and competitive (I’m raising my hand!), it could aid athletic performance. I’m still reading Running with the Buffaloes and Coach Wetmore constantly tells his guys they are fat and they need to slim down! The leaner they are the more formidable they are. I don’t need you to be able to count my ribs, I just want to kick some asphalt.

Another Idea- Marlene wrote this same goal in her Now What post yesterday. She suggests focusing on nutrition and taking regular fitness classes. I am going to look around at prices and schedules of classes in my area- thanks for the idea Marlene!

Grad Apps Goals

GOAL A: Deadline December 15th

GOAL A+: Deadline November 30th

The Course- Dedicate an entire day to each school’s application. Work on at least ONE item every day from the list below…

~~Write Personal Statement~~

~~Send to Readers and Make Revisions~~

~~Update and Revise Resume~~

Write supplemental statements

Request Transcripts from Midd

Print and Mail form, with money

Complete Online Applications

Distribute Recommendation Requests

Request to send GRE and Psych GRE scores

Getaway Going Going Goooone Goals

Plan Long Weekend Vermont Trip with Elliot
- Dorset or Wilmington B+B
- Middlebury
- Burlington
Plan New Year’s Trip to Denver with the Girls

I am a big fan of picking three major areas of goal-work and just GETTING THE JOB DONE. I could go on forever and ever with life goals, which is a super fun exercise I would like to do at some point soon, but for now I’m going to cap my IMMEDIATE ACTION goal list with the above three areas and all that each entails on a daily basis.

GTJD!

Next up, EXTENDED RACE CALENDAR.

2009

Currently zero items on the end of 2009 agenda.
Hometown Thanksgiving Race? Undecided.

2010

Sunday February 7 Boston Super Sunday 5k/10k distance TBD
Sunday March 28 3-State Eastern States 20 Miler
Monday April 19 Boston Marathon
Saturday June 26 Rock and Roll Seattle 1/2 or Full Marathon distance TBD
September probably Sunday the 5th Swanzey, NH Covered Bridges Half Marathon
Monday October 11 Boston Tufts 10k For Women

Marathon- check. Now… for the rest of life…

Have a happy Wednesday!!!

Highlights from the Weekend! And I’m back- with two runs.

2009-10-26T12:20:00.001-04:00

Oh my gosh… I had four days filled to the brim with friends and fun. And I’m running again! Not regularly or anything like that, but I’ve run twice and I have plans to run every other day until I feel like making another training plan. I’m going to alternate running days with gym days—this way I will get back into lifting and core work!

------------------------------------------

Here are some of my favorite photos from the weekend…

We had a pizza making and pumpkin carving party!

Our pumpkin family!

Below is the night I stayed out until 3am… You know I never do that when I get a message on my Facebook wall from someone who wasn’t there saying, “Lace I heard you stayed out past 2am… I don’t believe it!” LOL.

MIDD KIDS!!

I took the girls through the Boston Common and the Boston Public Gardens. There are ducks all over the place, but you can’t really tell in this picture.

Hahhhhvard. This is where I get on the train anytime I go downtown.

Above we are posing with Sam Adams just outside Fanueil Hall and Quincy Market.

Two of our four homemade pizzas!

Toasted pumpkin seeds!

Out in Boston at a Middlebury Grad Owned Bar- J.A. Stats!

If you scroll through the photos you can see I’m wearing my new boots! In the nighttime pictures I’m wearing the black ones, and in the daytime pictures I’m wearing the brown ones.

What you CAN’T see in the pictures is that my feet are KILLING me!!! NOT from running… from the shoes!!!! I also wore heels one of the days and between the heels and the boots… OH MY. My friends were joking that they are going to buy stock in band-aids because I basically plastered my feet in them. Heheh…

And here are some pictures of our house now that we have been there for a couple of months! It really feels like home. We solved the couch situation temporarily with chairs and a makeshift floor-level futon.

That ottoman is one of my favorite things EVER! The top comes off so it doubles as storage. Target $50 on sale… Woo woo!

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On Friday I went for a run in between walking around Boston and our first house-party of the weekend.

FIRST POST-MARATHON RUN!

DATE- FRIDAY 10-23-09

Total Distance: 4 miles

Total Time: 30:08

Average Pace: 7:32 min/mi

Splits: 8:11, 7:40, 7:14, 7:02 (when I’m going to speed up I love trying to beat myself each successive mile).

Notes: Wow I felt great. The whole first half mile I felt like I was floating. Like I mentioned last week, I have felt fully recovered and fine since Tuesday-Wednesday. I waited until Friday to test my legs, and really, I felt great. I pushed the pace to get back as quickly as possible.

ENDING THE WEEKEND ON A GOOD NOTE RUN!

DATE- SUNDAY 10-25-09

Total Distance: 11 miles

Total Time: 1:38.19

Average Pace: 8:54 min/mi

Splits: 9:14, 8:43, 8:35, 8:29, 8:48, 9:07, 9:04, 8:42, 8:31, 8:55, 9:17

Notes: I purposefully went slower than usual and I was pretty tired from the weekend in general. I was also having some stomach issues and I actually stopped to use the bathroom twice! Wahh-wahh. Hehe. But I felt much better overall when I finished and I even took an ice bath which I have to say I enjoyed! Running is pretty much a cure-all unless you have terrible blisters, nagging injuries, or some sort of respiratory illness.

I was sad to see my friends go, and it was nice to just set out for a long loop. I also really enjoyed the weather outside and the fall air and just losing myself in the run for a while.

Like I said, I will be running every other day unless something comes up. So after work this afternoon I’ll head to the gym. It’s time to resume life as close to normal as it gets… heh. HAPPY MONDAY!

TIaRT – Races to Run! – Hi, MCM Mama!

2009-10-22T10:54:00.001-04:00

This week's sponsor is MCM Mama, a favorite runner and blogger committed to running a race in all 50 states. So it shouldn't surprise us that she invites us to ponder and respond to:

We've all discussed why we run, but why do you RACE and how do you choose which races to run?

Do you look for certain distances, swag, location, start time, or something else? Tell me how you decide where and when to race. Also, I'm currently on a quest to run a race in every state. Please tell me—and others about a particular race you've run that is not to be missed.

I love racing. I became addicted to it quite quickly, as soon as I entered a few 5ks and 5milers in my New Hampshire hometown. I often won age group prizes, and it was that confidence boost in addition to that FINISHING FEELING that captured my heart.

What I LOVE and look for in a race:

1. Swag and Expo—the more freebies the better! The Tufts 10k Race Shirt (technical super comfy long-sleeve) wins hands down as my favorite race shirt. They also have the most post-race food by far of any race I have run.

2. Location(a)—I love running close to home. Both Keene, NH and Boston are “home” to me—and there’s a TON of races all the time to choose from. I get the benefit of sleeping in my own bed, knowing the area, not having to worry about travel or parking, seeing familiar faces, etc.

3. Location(b)—As easy as it is to run close to home, I also look for destination races that offer that EXCITEMENT I might not get in NH or Boston. BIG BIG races or Theme races (Rock N Roll is FOR SURE on my list!) or races that double as a weekend visit to a faraway friend.

4. Repeats—I like to run races from year to year that I have run previously. I’ve run the Tufts 10k now for 4 years in a row… knock on wood!

MUST RUN RACES--

RUN THIS…in New Hampshire: Linda’s Closet 5k in Nelson, NH. This is almost in the middle of nowhere! The race is for women only and it has some great local sponsors, including Stonyfield! I have won this race 3 years in a row and the prizes are AWESOME. Lots of prizes for lots of winners. Also—all the proceeds go to Linda’s Closet:

Linda’s Closet is a clothing resource for women. If you are returning to school, entering the work place, returning to the work force, or living on a restricted budget, Linda's Closet can help you achieve your job and career goals.

RUN THIS…in Massachusetts: Nope, I’m not going to say the Boston Marathon. I am going to say—The Tufts 10k for Women!

RUN THIS…in Maine: ONE LUCKY GUY half marathon! I haven’t actually run this yet, but I believe I will run it sometime soon. This is an all women’s race (lol I think I have a running theme!)

What are some of your must-run races?????? Future race dates and plans? I need to start working on my extended calendar!!!

HAPPY THURSDAY!

DAY THREE Recovery Status- and some SECRETS revealed.

2009-10-21T16:25:00.001-04:00

Feeling good and ready to flyyyy…

Photo Credit: Psychology Today “Healthy Living Woman”

Seriously how great is that picture?

I got a massage today! It was terrific. And for 60 minutes it was $40! Outrageously amazing, right?!

I have this secret to share with you about massages…

I never pay full price for a massage.

Well okay of course I have paid full price, in the past, and I will in the future- because there are certain massage providers I like a lot and would choose to go to them at full price.

BUT, as a general rule, I am a BARGAIN SHOPPER.

The secrets to saving money on a massage:

1. Be a first-time client. Almost always a massage provider has a first-time client special offer. Usually a reduced price! As long as you don’t live in Nowhere, New Hampshire, there are MANY MANY massage studios for you to try. Use Google, CitySearch, etc. to find the options near to you.

2. Check the WEBSITE. Sometimes there are deals or coupons offered on the website that you need to print out.

3. Go to a massage SCHOOL! Yes, even the trainees are amazing at what they do. (Side note: while this is true for massage, I do NOT suggest you go this route for a hair cut… just sayin’).

4. GROUPON!!!!! I’m not sure if this is just for Boston Area readers, but I’m absolutely positive there must be something similar for other city-areas. Groupon is a daily email that you sign up for that sends you a “Deal”—and half of the time it is a deal on a massage somewhere in the Boston area! Half price, or better! I also signed up for Goldstar, Vital Juice Daily, and Get Sugar—all daily deal websites!!!!!!!!!! It is free to sign up. Absolutely no “catch” involved. You get special offers emailed to your inbox, and if you want to buy something you do. If you don’t, you don’t. You could go your whole life without buying any of the deals. You can also purchase these as a gift. And the best part?? If you decide you want to buy a deal, you purchase it ahead of time and it doesn’t expire for at least a year! So I currently have an extra massage coupon all ready for when I want to use it between now and next September. SCORE.

**** ALWAYS REMEMBER TO LEAVE A GREAT TIP, especially since you saved some money on the massage.

And this is officially the end of the recovery series. LOL. It was a two-day series.

I’m not running, but I definitely feel like I could- easily. I feel 100% back to my pre-marathon self. BIZARRE, right?! I’m going to the gym for some light cycle action after work so I’ll report back tomorrow!

Objects and Events, Over and OUT!

DAY TWO Recovery Status.

2009-10-20T15:31:00.001-04:00

I kind of wish I felt worse! I earned some pain, right? Overall I’m feeling GREAT! I always wake up at my most sorest and stiffest but then as I walk around over the course of the day it just goes away. And that is exactly how today is going.

My knees are still just a little sore on the tops, and my left Achilles feels funky, but other than that I feel almost back to normal. I’m going up and down stairs, moving around pretty fluidly,… all a little surprising to me just 48 hours post-race. I guess the ice baths really do work!

I’ve been reading all about marathon recovery since that is what I’m supposed to be doing right now. Here’s a good simple six-stepper I found:

A 6-Step Plan to Speedy Marathon Recovery

By Coach Jenny Hadfield
For Active.com

Congratulations, you’ve finished the marathon! Now what? Complete marathon recovery can take anywhere from several weeks to several months, depending on the intensity of your race performance and your race-day recovery strategy. Truth is, post-marathon recovery is inevitable, but the speed at which you recover can be drastically improved by following a few simple post-race tricks.

Six Steps to Speedy Marathon Recovery

Marathon recovery begins the minute you cross the finish line. Keep walking at least 10 minutes after you cross the finish line to allow your body to return to its resting state gradually. Get your medal, take your photos, pick up your gear and keep walking. It will allow your heart rate and blood flow to return to its normal state as well as reduce the risk of blood pooling in your legs which can cause fainting. Get up and walk around 10 to 15 minutes every few hours for the rest of the day.

Refuel depleted muscles as soon as possible with a meal that includes carbohydrates, protein and sodium. Fuel is most efficiently absorbed in the first 30 to 60 minutes post-race. A peanut butter and jelly sandwich, banana and sports drink is one example. If you struggle with eating post-race, try a liquid recovery drink. Recovery drinks are formulated with everything you need to refuel your body--carbohydrates, protein, electrolytes and fluid. A good ole can of V-8 or chocolate milk works well too.

Within a few hours of finishing, soak your body in a cold bath, lake or ocean. Fill the tub with lukewarm water, add ice and soak for five minutes. Just like a baseball pitcher’s arm post-game, a cold water bath will aid in decreasing inflammation, thereby speeding the recovery process. Avoid hot tubs post-race. Although they sound like a lot more fun, the heat can impede recovery.

Sip fluids throughout the day to replenish fluid losses. Monitor your urine for adequate hydration levels. If your urine is pale yellow like lemonade you are adequately hydrated. If it runs dark, continue to hydrate. If it is clear, hold off on fluids as you may be over hydrating. Continue to replenish fuel and electrolytes (sodium, potassium) by eating small, frequent meals throughout the day.

Schedule a massage two or more hours post-race. Massages too soon to finishing the race can create more soreness. Massage can have a dramatic effect on post-marathon recovery times, and they are a wonderful reward for finishing a long season of training and all 26.2 miles. You can also perform your own massage with some of the products on the market like "the Stick" and foam rollers. They are great for deep tissue massage for hamstrings, calves, thighs and hips.

Actively rest with lower impact activities like swimming, cycling and yoga for seven to ten days post-marathon. Give your body and mind a full week off the demands of running, and it will reward you with an efficient recovery. Running too much, too soon post-marathon is the quickest way to an injury.

Follow a reverse taper when returning to your running regimen. That is, start with a few 30- to 40-minute easy paced runs and test the waters. If things feel good, gradually increase the duration and frequency of the runs. Keep the running intensity easy for at least three weeks post-marathon. And most importantly--listen to your body. If there are lingering aches and pains, consider taking a few more active rest days and let things heal completely.

Coach Jenny Hadfield is the co-author of the best-selling Marathoning for Mortals, and the new Running for Mortals and Training for Mortals series. Coach Jenny has trained thousands of runners and walkers with her training plans. Improve your marathon recovery by following one of her Active Trainer Marathon Recovery Training Programs here.

Does anyone have tried and true recovery tips?

I would add SLEEP to my list.

HAPPY TUESDAY! On the agenda: Errands, Clean the house!, TBL. Exciting exciting! Recovering on…

The Baystate Marathon Race Report! My first 26.2!

2009-10-19T14:42:00.001-04:00

It happened! I am a marathoner!! I made it…

I can't say I'm ANTSY to run another marathon anytime SOON, but eventually I want to beat my time. I do think I can do better, especially considering that my average pace at the 20-mile mark was 8:08 and I ended at 26.2 with an average pace of 8:18!!! Whoa talk about a slow down in the final few miles… BUT! That's the best part about running a new distance... you get to go for your own PR in a re-match!

For my first marathon I am overall very happy with my performance. I was a little frustrated with feeling so challenged at the end of the race, just to keep going, BUT the good news is that I rallied somehow to finish strong- I ran as hard as I could, as soon as I saw the 1 Mile To Go!

OFFICIAL STATS!

Total Net Time: 3:37.16

Average Pace: 8:18 (I misread the race results, the 8:08 pace was true through the 20-mile mark)

Age Group: 44/185

GARMIN REPORT!

Mile 1- 8:32
Mile 2- 8:05
Mile 3- 7:56
Mile 4- 7:54
Mile 5- 7:57
Mile 6- 8:01

I took my first Shot Blok (Margarita flavor which has added sodium).

Mile 7- 8:09
Mile 8- 8:04
Mile 9- 8:07

There was a treacherous slippery bridge included at the start of this mile, runners ran in 2s and it was hard to pass people here.

Mile 10- 7:56

I took my first Gu Roctane (Blueberry Pomegranate).

Mile 11-7:59

I saw Elliot on his way to wait at the 20 mile mark when I looped around again!

Mile 12- 8:02
Mile 13- 8:12

I saw my parents for a WELL TIMED boost!!! I was starting to feel fatigued and a little down about the distance and all of a sudden I saw my mom and dad and BOOM instant perk. My dad got a great picture of me as I ran by and gave them a big arms-out, big-smile. I got SOOOO much energy from seeing them and as you can see I sped up a little bit after! I was soooo happy from this point until about mile 18, when I started to get tired...

Mile 14- 7:59

I turned on my ipod here- it added to my energy boost! My times slowed down this time around (we were doing a second loop of what we did mile 3-13) but I was able to keep an upbeat stride thanks to feeling good. I was also passing people which helped me continue to feel confident going into the second and harder half of the race.

Took a Margarita Shot Blok here.

Mile 15- 8:03
Mile 16- 7:58
Mile 17- 8:11
Mile 18- 8:13
Mile 19- 8:23

Treacherous slippery bridge again!

Took my second Gu Roctane.

Mile 20- 8:12

Elliot met me here to run with me and to help keep my head in the game for the last 6 miles!

Mile 21- 8:24

Starting to feel really wet and tired. I told Elliot I had a cramp and didn't feel very good and he said, "Honey you just ran 20 miles! Of course you don't feel good!" That made me feel better, somehow.

Mile 22- 8:26

The next 3 miles were really challenging, I had to just keep telling myself to KEEP GOING.

Mile 23- 8:44
Mile 24- 8:53

I took part of a Gu Roctane here in an attempt to jump start my legs!

Mile 25- 9:34

I walked briefly to get rid of a cramp that had me doubled over. LUCKILY it went away and I closed down my mind and broke back into the best run I could at that point. Elliot was still right beside me.

Mile 26- 8:44

Running as hard as I can... broke out into a sprint that turned out to be a bit premature to maintain to the end since we had this odd little loop around a (baseball?) field inside a small outdoor stadium, it was neat though because the stands were filled with spectators so everyone was looking down on you as you finished.

I forgot to turn off my watch, so it ran an extra few minutes, oops. I did this at Tufts, too. Elliot even reminded me to stop my watch when he ducked out of the race near the end. But. I forgot. Totally got caught up in the finish.

Okay so that is the short version. Read on for the looooooong version.

PRE-RACE!

The Night Before--

I was nervous and anxious ALL of Saturday. I tried to sit and read and relax as much as possible, but both Elliot and I were restless and feeding off each other's nervous energy. I watched Running the Sahara and it sort of clicked a switch for me and channeled my anxiety into more of an excitement.

Dinner-- Morningstar Veggie Sausage and Egg Sandiwiches on English Muffins with our usual stir fry veggies (just a whoooooole bunch of veggies in the wok with evoo). I had a chocolate chip Clif Bar for dessert.

Sleep-- DID NOT HAPPEN. I was soooooooo wound up! We went to bed at 8:30,... WISHFUL THINKING! Elliot and I tossed and turned and got up and laid back down and I even took Nyquil, twice! (Not full doses). Around 11:30 I started getting frustrated, LOL, and finally Elliot made me hot tea and suggested we both read boring books for ten minutes. Hahah. Well it worked. Around midnight I must have drifted off...

The Morning of the Race!--

5:25am- BEEP BEEP BEEP...
5:30am- OATMEAL breakfast: oatmeal with banana cooked in, blueberries, cottage cheese, and almonds swirled in.

5:45am- OUTFIT: two-piece athletic bathing suit as the base layer (hey it worked at Eastern States the 20-mile race I ran all in the rain! LOL). I learned from Eastern States, though, DON'T WEAR A 1-PIECE bathing suit to a race. It makes bathroom stops incredibly arduous. Hah. Lesson learned and I was happy with my base layer choice for the marathon. Under Armour stretch-insulated-comfortable mock-neck long sleeve as my middle layer. MORE Half Marathon orange light windbreaker, sort of rain resistant, as the outermost layer. I loved having pockets for gels and bloks. I wore shorts. I also wore a running hat to shield my face and eyes from the rain, and over that I wore a winter hat. I wore gloves on my hands. I was snug and warm, but never TOO warm. I got soaked, but I didn't FEEL soaked until the home stretch. Except for my feet. My sneakers started squishing as early as mile 10.

6:10am- IN THE CAR! We stopped at a McD's for coffee en route
7:00am- Arrive and Park!!!! Meet Geraldine.
7:30am- Hit the bathrooms aka Porta-Potties—

SIDE NOTE: there were PLENTY of porta-potties all over the place and at EVERY SINGLE WATER STOP along the course. Great job with water, gatorade, and bathrooms Baystate Marathon!! Every water stop was PACKED with volunteers. They made it fun by wearing costumes and making posters and always shouting encouragement along with handing out water.

7:40am- Some light dynamic stretching. Still in my sweatpants.
7:45am- RAN INTO TAMI! She was walking toward the start-line behind me and I heard "Lacey??" and I turned around and IMMEDIATELY recognized her from her blog photos. Tami you are beautiful!!! I told her how much I loved her race top-- Tami you'll have to post a photo! We wished each other good luck and chatted, then parted ways. I handed off my sweatpants to Elliot and then waited in the start line chute!!

8:08am (so says Garmin!)- WE'RE OFF!!!

The Race!

Early miles- I was completely entertained by HOW MANY RUNNERS there were. The Half and the Full ran together for the first three miles, until we hit the river loop. We took up the ENTIRE 4-lane road where the race started!!!! It was madness.

The pacers were a bit of a mystery. I kept my eye on the 3:40 pacer girls, but they were the TALK of all the runners around me. The girls were running sub 8s through Mile 7-- CLEARLY not a 3:40 pace. I ended up passing them around mile 7, when they started to finally slow down.

My water strategy was to take sips from my handheld whenever I passed a water station. I think I remembered most of the time. Toward the end of the race I drank more, taking bigger sips, but I actually never ran out. I think my handheld is 12 or 16 oz so that is how much water I drank during the race. I took water whenever I took a shot blok or a gel.

Not having to stop at water stops was KEY. I'm terrible at grabbing water and usually have to walk when I take it during races. Not stopping and not walking was really important to the mental aspect of my marathon—I never lost my rhythm. I never worried about water. It just gave me a lot of peace of mind and allowed me to hold my forward focus. I also got to pass people at every water stop, and sometimes I didn't get passed back, so clearly it was a time-saver.

Middle miles- Holding a steady 8 minute mile pace- We ran a 10-mile loop of the river twice. Crossing bridges was a fun way to break up the race and I actually didn't mind the double loop. It was nice to run a familiar course the second time around. Seeing my parents was KEY to a strong second half, at least until the very end of the race. I was HAPPY literally goofy-grinning and running along fairly easily, up the hills, past people, feeling great! This lasted Mile 13-Mile 17. Then I sort of lost a little Oomph. As I mentioned in my splits report, I also turned on my Ipod from Mile 13- to the end of the race, which gave me a ton of energy.

Mile 20- 2 hours 42 minutes- an 8:08 pace- Elliot was waiting for me here! He ran right beside me and we dodged puddles together and weaved in and out of runners who were slowing down more than me or walking.

I tried to keep up a steady pace. But I was definitely slowing down with every passing mile. I still felt pretty good from Mile 20-21 I didn't really notice that I had gone so far. This made me happy, since I haven't ever had 20-mile run where I didn't feel like dying at the end!!! So just the fact that I had made it that far and was still running right along, I was encouraged.
Mile 21- Umm... I am hurting! I want the finish line to be closer than 5 miles away! Put my head down and focus on foot forward, foot forward,... just...keep...going. Ipod and Elliot kept me moving forward. I wanted to go faster, but I just couldn't!!! We were alternately passing people and getting passed here.

Mile 22-25- The slow down! Must keep pushing- AHHHHHHHH I FEEL TERRIBLE!!!!! That was what I was thinking. There was a solid 5-10 seconds I had to stop to walk to get rid of a cramp. I got rid of it, then I just gritted my teeth, closed my mind, and got back into a run. The walk actually helped me keep going and it was as short as what I might have done to take water at one of the stops. As I was walking I could FEEL the stiffness in my legs for the first time. I knew that I couldn't walk for long otherwise I would lose all forward motion capability. Time to RUN. GTJD (get the job done).

Mile 26- The finish!- ALMOST THERE! I knew from my watch that I was on the verge of a BQ, and knowing that helped combat and disappointment I felt from slowing down. I had 10 minutes allowed per mile for the last 3 miles if I needed it... I didn't WANT it, but it helped me feel better as I was clearly struggling. THIS IS HARD! Hehe.

I rallied that last mile, when I was hurting. We crossed a final bridge and entered an EXTENDED finish chute. I expected the finish line AROUND THE CORNER, but actually there were a couple of corners, and then there was the Mile 26 sign and then we entered a baseball field that had cones around the very edge of it. We had to run around the field, over muddy dirt and tarp covered mounds, before we FINALLY crossed the finish line. I had sprinted to the Mile 26 mark as soon as Elliot said goodbye but I lost some of that push when we were funneled onto the edge of the field. Mud and runners blocking me killed the oomph. But I ran hard to the finish.

Kari caught me on camera as I ran by just before entering the final stretch around the field:

Her photo caption pretty accurately captures how I was feeling:

lacey streaking by just past mile 26 - i was screaming her name, but as the woman standing next to me put it, "i guess lacey has her eyes on the prize." did not expect her to be running this fast at mile 26, hence the blurred oh gosh there she is moment.

AND DONE--
I held my arms up in the air for a mini-celebration as I crossed over the line- my Dad got a great shot of that and hopefully I will have a photo soon to share.

And then BAM I got hit hard with waves of emotion. I was having trouble breathing. I started hyperventilating. I'm not exactly sure why, but I also started crying!!!! I held back the tears as I followed the stream of runners ambling out of the finish area.

We got our capes and medals and water and then we had to walk UP the stairs of the stands that surrounded the field. LOL. That was kind of funny considering my knees didn't want to bend.

I made it up the stairs and Elliot was right there at the top. I let go of all the tears and just started sobbing as I leaned against him and he hugged me until I stopped crying. Hehehe... it was a really great moment actually.

I think just finishing was such a strong emotion and having to run through some really hard final miles, all of that together suddenly hit me when it was over.

Post-Race Recovery!

I grabbed some of the food that was out for the runners. They were serving food cafeteria style on trays and in lines and everything. I wasn't sure what looked good, but I took some orange slices (mmm), minestrone soup (ewww it was awful but I drank half. I wanted it to be hot since I was FREEZING, but it was lukewarm and had an ick-factor taste), and a banana.

Here I am with my yucky soup…

I am soaked and freezing in that picture!! My teeth literally started chattering. BUT I AM A MARATHONER!!! Hehe. I knew the misery was just temporary and I was just so happy to have MADE IT and so happy to have my family and Elliot all around me.

I managed to change into dry sweatpants right away but had to hobble to the car for the rest of my clothes.

My entire family AND Tucker escorted me back to the car. And we all squeezed into the Corolla somehow. The fam had parked at the 3-mile mark and then walked to the finish line!!! That is some SERIOUS spectating!!!! Walking 3-miles in the cold and rain. Spending hours outside just to be there for me… !!!

Elliot and I drove Mom and Dad and Kari and Duy and Tucker to their cars. We took a bazillion pictures because of the hilarity-factor. How many Heberts+ can you fit in 1-Corolla…

After we said our goodbyes I had a Chocolate Carnation Instant Breakfast Bottle (Tufts 10k Freebie!!) and a Peanut Toffee Buzz Clif Bar en route back home. We stopped at Starbucks and got lattes, too.

When we got home I got right in an ice bath. It actually felt really good on my super broken feeling knees.

The Next Day--

Today I am sort of stiff. My knees have trouble bending and they definitely hurt. Going up and down stairs is a process. I took another ice bath at 7am just because it makes me feel so much better! I think this is helping a lot actually.

I am pretty sure I won’t be running this week! It is time to recover… Other than my knees I am doing pretty good! My shoulders are really tight and I have some stiffness here and there, but really my only true complaint is the knee pain.

THANKS FOR READING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I know this was super duper long. I will post more pictures as I get them.

I'M A MARATHONER! A Quick Check-In!

2009-10-18T19:00:00.005-04:00

I will be back tomorrow with a monster marathon recap!!!!!

THANK YOU EVERYONE for being so incredible and supportive as I got ready for the race and as I am now recovering from it...

Look above in the mini blog for race results. And come back tomorrow for the details!

I will leave you with a photo from after the race. I'm wearing my medal around my neck and Kari and Duy's dog Tucker is sitting in my lap...

See you tomorrow!!

It’s the final countdown…

2009-10-16T13:18:00.001-04:00

Maybe yesterday I should’ve asked the Wizard for some sunshine.

BAYSTATE MARATHON WEATHER FORECAST

Sunday October 18 IN Lowell, MA

Race Starts at 8am

Sunrise 7:02 am

um, SUN? what sun? sigh.

8 am

41°F
Rain

34°F

70% chance of precip

9 am

42°F
Rain

35°F

60% chance of precip

10 am

44°F
Cloudy

37°F

20% chance of precip

11 am

45°F
Cloudy

38°F

0% chance of precip

12 pm

45°F
Cloudy

38°F

10% chance of precip

Marathon Mentor Geraldine sent me her rainy day running tips:

put plastic bags over your shoes secured with tape until the race is about to begin
a large trash bag over your running clothes with a hole cut out for head. also removed at start of race
a disposable layer of clothes over your running clothes to toss on the side of the road after you have warmed up
dry clothes at end of race

Cue: TIME TO BE A SURVIVOR. Time to find the edge. It’s about how hard you can get hit, how much you can take, and keep moving forward.

I went out for a short 3-miler this morning, last run before the race. And guess what--- I SAW SNOW! That needs a few more exclamation points: !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The flakes were few and far between, but still, they qualified as a FLURRY!!!! WOW. Race day looks pretty chilly, too. But all signs point to RAIN. Booo.

Given the choice between rain and snow, I would absolutely choose snow.

I am working really hard on my race outfit decision. I spent the entire three miles this morning thinking about it.

FRIDAY LAST TAPER RUN TIL THE BIG DAY

Total Distance: 3.13 miles (threes again!)

Total Time: 26:36.26

Average Pace: 8:31 min/mi

Splits: 9:01, 8:31, 8:02

Notes: Today I ran in shorts. My legs were pretty cold and slightly numb, but I warmed up a little bit by the end of the run. Pants? Shorts? Pants? Shorts? Where is my flower with the petals to pull off??????

Tomorrow Elliot and I are going to the race expo! I want to get there right when it begins. Heh. That way the rest of the day I can spend off my feet. I have plans to read more of Running with the Buffaloes (initial thoughts about this book: COMPLETE OPPOSITE of Run Less, Run Faster. Hehe. It is so good! I would love to write something sociological like this, as a participant-observer).

I am also going to watch Running the Sahara!!!!

Gotta get through the day…

ANYONE HAVE ANY LAST MINUTE TIPS????? SANITY KEEPERS?

The weekend is upon is… GOOD LUCK TO ALL MY FELLOW RACERS!

EDITED TO ADD:

Kim just linked me to the COOLEST link from Runner’s World that is an interactive what to wear guide! What to Wear for running

You input your weather conditions and preferences and it builds you an outfit suggestion!!! Wow, thanks Kim!!!

Here are my results and I think it’s a good guideline!

The conditions you reported were:
Temperature: 35 degrees F, Wind: Breezy,
Conditions: Rain, You like to feel: Cool

REVISE CONDITIONS

We suggest you wear:

Winter cap
A warm hat that covers your ears is a must on cold days, especially windy ones, and can be one of the best steps you can take to keep warm. Thermastat or other technical-fiber hats are available at specialty running stores.

Shorts
The basic element of any runner's wardrobe. Usually a nylon or technical fiber.

Long-sleeve shirt
A long-sleeved shirt made of high-tech polyester will pull moisture away from your skin, keeping you from getting clammy and cold on a cooler day.

Jacket
A jacket, usually a polyester blend, serves to keep you warm, keep off wind, rain, and snow, and manage your perspiration. It's an essential piece of equipment on cold, windy and/or rainy days.

Gloves
To keep your hands warm on a cold day. Mittens keep your hands warmer when temperatures drop below 30?. When in doubt, better to take your gloves with you. They're easy to tuck in your shorts or tights.

TIaRT- Take Me to the Wizard!- Hi, Tall Mom Mel!

2009-10-15T15:38:00.001-04:00

This week's sponsor is Melanie, author of her blog, Tall Mom on The Run. Melanie offers all of us this question to ponder and respond to:

Scarecrow asked for a Brain, Tin Man for a Heart, and Lion for Courage. If you could meet the Wizard of Running and ask for anything, what would it be?

When your wish was granted, how would your travels down the Yellow Brick Road of running be different?

Yay Tall Mom! Melanie happens to be one of my very favorite most enthusiastic and COLORFUL bloggers! Seriously go check out her site. She is already over the rainbow!!!

I would ask the Wizard for THE HARDEST OF HARD, TONED OF TONED, WORKED OF WORKED CORE. Yes, that is right, I want a 6-pack. And also you know, the back, and all those balancing muscles that work to prevent injury! I think I would be a better athlete overall and looking at long term happy running if I had a really strong core.

Somehow I have not stayed on the core-work bandwagon. I will do some exercises here or there, if I’m at the gym, if I think of it.

NO. That is not how it happens. WIZARD GRANT ME MY WISH!

LOL> mark my words. I will get into the core habit… SOON.

Repeat after me: Marathon first, rest of life second.

Okay, that’s all for today.

LOVE YA MEL!

Have a happy Thursday y’all.

Distraction Action! Going Blue, Temporary Pet, and Collected Wisdom.

2009-10-14T15:39:00.001-04:00

Yesterday I mentioned that the Tufts 10k with two lovely ladies was a wonderful final hurrah in the throes of taper doubt and wonderment. I am here to report that I am keeping myself occupied and happily distracted as the days count down.

Here is the distraction action at its finest…

I WENT OUT ON A LIMB and bought a ~~new~~ refurbished Ipod Shuffle. It’s so pretty!

And in my favorite color. Can’t beat $39 and free shipping. Well actually I bit the bullet and paid $10 for shipping so it would get here in time for the race. I am going to bring it to Baystate just in case I need that music moves me boost as I really do get a lot of energy from some songs.

I spent a good chunk of the day working on my 5.5 hour playlist. You know, just in case. LOL.

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Last night Elliot and I welcomed a special visitor!!! We missed our weekend visitor Amy so much we had to have someone else over right away. Hehe. Guess who it is…!!

…YOGI IS BACK!!

I dog-sat for Yogi and his brother Bitsy back in April. Well Bitsy was much older and unfortunately has passed away. I’m happy to host Yogi for a few days! He’s with us until Thursday night. Hooray! He’s such a fluffball, and a really great companion. He likes to snuggle, he’s quiet, but he’ll get all excited if you run around with him. He loves breaking out in a sprint whenever we go for walks. Lots of enthusiasm there. Heh. I love that he gets me out in the fresh air at regular intervals across the day! He is a very welcome furball friend for a few days.

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I am sure I am not alone when I say that I LOVE reading quotes. Motivational, thought-provoking, inspirational, or just plain funny. Well, I recently received a collection of running quotes from one of my best friends who ran cross-country in college. She sent them to me to help fuel the racing fire. A few of them are new to me, and the whole list is a good read through as I re-inspire myself second to second. Here’s the list:

Pain is temporary, pride is forever.

“Every morning in Africa, a Gazelle wakes up. It knows it must run faster than the fastest lion or it will be killed. Every morning a Lion wakes up. It knows it must outrun the slowest Gazelle or it will starve to death. It doesn't matter whether you are a Lion or a Gazelle... when the sun comes up, you'd better be running.”

"Believe in yourself, know yourself, deny yourself, and be humble." - John Tracy's four principles of training prior to Los Angeles 84

"The will to win means nothing without the will to prepare." - Juma Ikangaa, Tanzania

"Good things come slow - especially in distance running." - Bill Dellinger, Oregon coach

"Running is a big question mark that's there each and every day. It asks you, 'Are you going to be a wimp or are you going to be strong today?'" - Peter Maher, Irish-Canadian Olympian and sub-2:12 marathoner

"Now if you are going to win any battle you have to do one thing. You have to make the mind run the body. Never let the body tell the mind what to do. The body will always give up. It is always tired morning, noon, and night. But the body is never tired if the mind is not tired. When you were younger the mind could make you dance all night, and the body was never tired...You've always got to make the mind take over and keep going." - George S. Patton, U.S. Army General and 1912 Olympian

"Mind is everything: muscle - pieces of rubber. All that I am, I am because of my mind." - Paavo Nurmi

"A lot of people run a race to see who's the fastest. I run to see who has the most guts.” - Steve Prefontaine

"I tell our runners to divide the race into thirds. Run the first part with your head, the middle part with your personality, and the last part with your heart." - Mike Fanelli, club coach

"We are different, in essence, from other men. If you want to win something, run 100 meters. If you want to experience something, run a marathon." -Emil Zatopek

"The marathon's about being in contention over the last 10K. That's when it's about what you have in your core. You have run all the strength, all the superficial fitness out of yourself, and it really comes down to what's left inside you. To be able to draw deep and pull something out of yourself is one of the most tremendous things about the marathon." - Rob de Castella

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And more reading!, I just got a book in the mail- something I ordered on the recommendation of Amanda at Run to the Finish. I’m going to jump right in and interrupt myself in the middle of my last *gasp* Ken Follett book. LOL. So this is what I will read for the next few days:

I ran this morning, a short and sweet 4-miler. Can you believe that I have just THREE MORE MILES to run and other than that it is rest-and-RACE?!?! If you refer back to my taper schedule, you will see that I’m nixing the final 3x800 in favor of an extra rest day. Elliot’s mom is my marathon mentor and it was her suggestion to let the Tufts 10k be my final hard effort. So here’s the run I did today.

Weds 4-Miler!

Total Distance: 4 miles

Total Time: 33:37.33 (three-much?)

Average Pace: 8:24 min/mi

Splits: 8:52, 8:35, 8:11, 7:57—alright, nicely progressing!

I really enjoyed my run this morning. It is COLD out now! I kind of love it! It is not sooooooooo cold that I need a hat, but it is cold enough to really open my eyes and make me pull my hands into my sleeves.

Is it fall for everyone else? I’ve been seeing reports of SNOW from around the blogosphere. Yikes!

Have a great day!!!!

Tufts 10k Race Report and Photos! What a great way to spend a Monday!!!

2009-10-13T09:47:00.001-04:00

Hi!!!

Gosh, I love this blog community.
YOU ARE ALL SO SWEET! I have been really anxious and doubtful lately, and what is making a huge difference is your comments here on the blog!!! You are getting me through these last few days pre-first-marathon. I cannot tell you all how much I appreciate your kind words and well wishes!!!! I read them and think to myself yes I can do this.

T-5 DAYS!!!!

Okay, onto the Monday Recap!!!!!!!!!!

Ready for this?! I actually took a ton of pictures, so this will be fun. Not to mention TUFTS 10K was AMAZING as usual!!!!! Boston had a beautiful day. It was brisk with a high in the 50s, what I would call perfect running weather. Sunshine, smiles...

…MEET KARYN!!!! Absolute dream blogger meet up. She was like a close friend who I had never actually met.

Amy and I ran side-by-side! What a fun race that made for. I felt really proud to pace Ames through the race, and run right next to her! I wanted everyone in the race and on the sidelines to see our shirts. Go Hebert Kids!

So how was the race????

AWESOME!!!

While Karyn picked up her race number, Ames and I took some Boston background photos and did some dynamic stretching!

LOL. Clearly a dynamic stretch.

Amy was super pumped. We killed the first mile and it was probably a little too fast! We got caught up... we ran two miles fast and then settled into a more conservative pace for the remainder of the race.

This was my the first time Tufts felt relatively easy to me! Both the distance and the pace. I have come a long way in terms of endurance. I had a ton of energy and my legs felt great!!!! Gosh that makes me feel really good going into the end of taper. I have barely any miles for the rest of the week. A lot of rest and mental preparation. So this 10k with Amy and Karyn was a really great distraction and feel-good run.

TUFTS 10K SPLITS

Mile 1- 7:05
Mile 2- 7:15
Mile 3- 7:41
Mile 4- 7:55
Mile 5- 7:52
Mile 6- 7:37

Official Finish Time- 47:29 which is a 7:29 min/mile-- 30 seconds under our goal time! Woo Woo! Way to Go AMES!

I saw a couple friends along the course who had come out to cheer us on- so nice to see them!

I had the clarity of mind during this run to reflect on the run while it was underway. I thought to myself: I LOVE BOSTON! I really like the course and running on all familiar streets, where I do a lot of my training. And now that it's my fourth year I have an exact imprint of the run in my mind.

Part of the course along the river heads out towards Watertown, before looping back on itself. My stomping grounds. And when the run turns back on itself you can see the front runners.

WOW, the elites looked great this year, as always. Joan Benoit Samuelson was back at age 52 she ran 5:50 miles, and Magdalena Lewy Boulet was there as well, the Olympic Marathoner who ran the NYC Half this past August. When the elite runners passed us we could see the Kenyan woman was out in front. But last year's winner Molly Huddle from Providence, RI came from behind to take the WIN for the second year in a row, by a margin of 5 seconds!! Way to represent!!!!

Karyn ran by around mile 5 and looked really strong!! I wanted so badly to sprint her to the end-- Karyn we are racing next year!! I can't wait!!!! And if I don't swear off marathons after Baystate perhaps I could run one you're running and you could help pace me in that. What the future holds, who knows.

Ame and I held our pace and we stayed steady to the finish. SISTER SUCCESS!

It was a tough finish for Amy, but if you look at our last mile, we picked up our pace to finish strong, just like the Tufts Tagline: START STRONG, FINISH STRONGER!

Joan Benoit Samuelson stood at the finish line to shake all the runners' hands! Ames and I made sure to say hi!

Karyn waited for us at the finish line and we went together to the FREEBIES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Talk about food food and more food. We loaded up on mini Luna bars, bananas, Carnation Instant Breakfast bottles, oranges, and bagels. MMmmMMm!!!! Yes we literally filled BAGS. Heh.

We also spun around the sponsor tents for some more Luna swag, some Izze drinks, and mini Lara Bars!!!!!! The Lara Bars appeared to be all out, but we must have looked really sad about that because the volunteer dug down into her bag and refilled the bowl for us!!! Hehehe... score !

More pictures, of course... Lookin' good... Feelin' great!

CHECK OUT KARYN’S ELECTRIC PINK NAILPOLISH. That’s the spirit!

What a day! I love the Tufts 10k day every year. It's one of my most favorite days all year I think!!!! Now that I've been blogging here for more than a year you get the benefit of past posts for repeat events. LOL. Last year I ran a 43:34 which is a 7:01 pace. I went on to beat myself at the 10k distance in February '09 running two minutes faster for a current PR of 41:20- a 6:40 pace! I wonder if I am there now. I will have to find a 10k to run sometime if possible. I have noticed that there aren't that many 10k races period. Perhaps I could work on my 5k PR again. But now I'm just thinking out loud. Marathon first. The rest of life second. Hehe. You can quote me on that.

Just for a little background for my newer friends, last year I ran the Tufts 10k as my first race back after some sideline time as a result of getting hit by a car. I was biking home from work in August of '08 and BOOM. Bad scene.

That was actually the reason I started the blog, to have something to do and a place to write and distract myself from what was really a pretty upsetting event. So Objects and Events was born, I ran the Tufts 10k '08, wrote about it, and here I am a year later, another Tufts 10k deep, and 365 days happier, on the verge of stepping foot to the starting line of 26.2.

This post ended up being pretty long! Thanks for sticking with it if you did. Hey at least there were pictures, right????? Hehe. HAVE A VERY HAPPY TUESDAY!

Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Sister Photo Op!

2009-10-11T18:31:00.009-04:00

Hello! Happy long weekend from all of us over here!

Please excuse the post blips in structure-- I am blogging from blogspot directly instead of my usual LiveWriter venue.

FIRST OF ALL! Congrats to MATT! His first marathon! Read his recap on his blog here.

SECOND OF ALL! T-1 WEEK til my first marathon! YOWWSAHHHH.

Here is what I did Friday and Saturday. I swapped my last tapering long run of 11 miles to run it on Friday before work instead of Saturday, since Elliot and I planned to be out of town all day.

Friday Long Run!
Total Distance: 11 miles
Total Time: 1hr:25min.24
Average Pace: 7:46 min/mi
Splits:
7:59
7:43
7:38
7:43
7:43 (yes exact same back to back!)
7:39
7:45
7:43
7:46
7:46 (again!)
7:58 (don't be fooled, I slowed way down then ran really hard the last .2 miles to get my time under 8).
Notes: I did not feel like I was cruising exactly... and the last mile felt really hard. I ran out of energy. But I kept up the pace I wanted to keep up, and faster even than I thought I might go. Hooray! I think I ran out of energy because I did not prepare too well for this run. I just got up and went, and did not bring water or shot bloks. I kind of just wanted to get it done and felt like erring on the less is more side. I'm just going with the taper flow at this point and trying to keep a positive mind!

On Saturday morning Elliot and I got up and hit the road to Amherst, MA one of the prettiest towns around! I love little Amherst.

Elliot's brother Jed and his wife Mao Mao live there and they recently bought their first house. We spent the entire day moving all of their stuff from their apartment to the new house, just over a mile apart!!!!!!

Whew moving is HARD! I got tired. Lots of lifting and walking stuff out to the U-haul and lifting again and walking stuff into the new house. Luckily I started my day with a Banana Chocolate Vivanno with Espresso.

After all that work believe it or not Elliot, his other brother Jonah, and I decided to go out for a 4 mile run- what I was supposed to run anyway.

I had been on the verge of calling moving day my workout, but they wanted to go. And the fresh air was so inviting and really an enjoyable way to end the day actually. I got energy from our run and sort of re-energized for the drive home.

We ended up running A LOT faster than I probably should have!!!!! We jumped on a bike trail right near the new house which was nice and flat, with a slight incline on the way out and and then the very last quarter mile was downhill, so we gunned it to get a great final mile time. Check out the split progressions!

Saturday Spontaneous Run
Total Distance: 4 milesTotal Time: 29:26
Average Pace: 7:25 min/mi
Splits:
8:03
7:23
7:15
6:45

Today I nixed the potential 4 mile easy run for a rest day. Actually I am really sore from yesterday's 4-miler! Ah!

And today I didn't even rest, really- I spent all day walking around Boylston and Newbury Streets with my sister Amy! We went downtown to pick up our Tufts 10k race numbers and it was such a nice day we kind of just wandered around outside. I got Ames her first ever Choc Ban Vivanno with Espresso! Mmm.

We also stopped in to Sephora and gave ourselves mini make-overs. LOL. Oh, sisters. I never wear make-up, but it was fun for a couple of hours! And of course for some photos :)

10K Race Tomorrow!!!! We're thinking we might run 8 minute/miles, but since this is Amy's first 10k we really don't know! We'll be running together and I am looking forward to the entire experience. Seriously the entire Common turns into a party with all the sponsor tents set up and freebies for the taking and crowds of people hanging around.

Karyn the Marathon Maiden is coming in to town as well! Blogger Meet Up WooWOOO! Karyn, I have my camera so we'll be sure to get some photos for you :)

SNEAK PEEK TUFTS 10K HEBERT KIDS T-SHIRTS!

In My Poh-ket….

2009-10-09T15:11:00.001-04:00

The newly engaged Leslie over at Jackson’s World gave me a really sweet shout out and tagged me to play Over the Top! Woo woo! Thanks L-dawwwg.

In order to accept the award I have to answer the following questions with only one word.

1.Where is your cell phone? Jacket

2.Your hair? Down!
3. Your mother? Selfless

4. Your father? Hilarious

5. Your favorite food? Bananas
6. Your dream last night? Missing

7. Your favorite drink? Vivanno

8. Your dream/goal? Peace

9. What room are you in? Office

10. Your hobby? Reading

11. Your fear? Spiders

12. Where do you want to be in 6 years? Home
13. Where were you last night? Chair

14. Something you aren’t? Outrageous
15. Muffins? Grilled

16. Wish list item? Massage

17. Where did you grow up? Keene

18. Last thing you did? Article

19. What are you wearing? Earth

20. Your TV? YES
21. Your pets? sigh

22. Your friends? Heart

23. Your life? Family

24. Your mood? Ready

25. Missing someone? Pepper

26. Vehicle? Corolla
27. Something you’re not wearing? Necklace
28. Your favorite store? Online

29. Your favorite color? Blue

30. When was the last time you laughed? Nighttime

31. Last time you cried? Tuesday

33. One place that I go over and over? Library

34. One person who emails me regularly? Elliot

35. Favorite place to eat? NakedFish

Okay so I cheated slightly on that last one, lol. Apparently I have a lot to say because I wanted to elaborate on almost every single answer!!!!!!

I will compromise and leave you with just one extended answer. My preferred answer to Q. Number 1 was: jacket pocket.

And from “jacket pocket”… I absolutely have to post what I thought of next… You get two videos that popped into my mind.

I find this SOoOo FUNNY! hehe. I actually had to hit pause on this first video so that I didn’t burst out laughing which would be entirely inappropriate as you can hear a pin drop in my office today. LOL.

Happy Friday!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

GOOD LUCK TO ALL WEEKEND RACERS!!!!!!!!!!!!! GO GET ‘EM!!!!

TIaRT- hostess in 'da houuuuse...

2009-10-08T12:02:00.004-04:00

I'm hosting TIaRT this week over at Runners' Lounge!!

Imagine you are attending a week-long running camp. Where would it be? What would you do? Would there be classes? Bootcamps? Socials?
I want to know all about the kinds of things that make up your ideal running-related week. No work, no obligations outside of camp,... for one week you can have it exactly your way! Tell me all about it!

I have attended my fair share of camps between basketball and soccer over the years. I never ventured far from home-- most of the camps I attended were in NH. I still remember my first overnight basketball camp, summer after seventh grade. I was two hours away from home but it felt so far. I didn't know anyone! I was only there for a week but I remember that my mom wrote me letters that I got in the mail. I had one of those lanyard necklaces to hold my room key.

If I could go to a running camp now, I will venture more than two hours from home to go to it. I want it to be a destination camp. Where would I go if I could go anywhere? Costa Rica. I've never been but a friend of mine went to a health resort there and ever since hearing about it I've wanted to go. But I don't want to JUST be pampered. I want to earn it!

CAMP LOCATION: Costa Rica

CAMP NAME: Camp Never Quit

CAMP DURATION: 2 WEEKS

My camp will be HARD. But there are perks. Upon arrival, we will be provided with a complete SWAG package-- sneakers, socks, comfortable tech wear, water bottles, energy bars and gus and bloks, reading material, and super soft lounge wear.

Our coaches will be elite athletes and they will lead us on all sorts of running workouts:

long runs,
progression runs,
interval runs,
form drills and strides,
strength work, core work,
blast BOOTCAMPS,...

we will see both sunrises and sunsets as we drip sweat...,
...we will be worked into the ground!!!!!

We will be grouped by our paces and level so we have a small "team" to stick with through the workouts. There will be many coaches at my camp so the ratio of runner to coach is never more than 3:1, so each runner gets plenty of attention and NO QUITTING ALLOWED.

There is a build-your-own smoothie bar at camp-- free for all runners.

There is a training room with staff ready to work out any kinks, help you stretch, and of course there are plenty of ice baths ready and waiting.

There would not be any structured socials, but all of the camp runners would be close by the end of the week. Friendships will be made over the course of miles together and working harder than you've ever worked side by side with someone who is sticking with it as much as you are.

At the end of the two weeks we would all be rewarded for all of our hard work with a runner's dream weekend at a local health resort. Two days of complete peace and relaxation. Outdoor pools and hot tubs, yoga and meditation classes, massages and ice baths, fresh local food,... I also want to play with some lemurs. LOL. Are there even lemurs in Costa Rica? I hope so. When I was little I reeeeeally wanted a pet lemur.

And THAT is my TIaRT! Happy Thursday!!!

P.S. EDITED TO ADD: I was featured on the news back when I worked with my little guy Patrick as his case manager at The New England Center for Children in 2006-2007... (sigh we've been together now for more than three years!!)... well guess what?!

We're still famous! Check us out in this recent news clip! (Can you spot us???)