Janathon, 'sorted'.

See how i worked in that new vocabulary word? shaZAM!
I started the month doing fairly well, at least better than Juneathon. Thennn I got pneumonia. Those buggers residing in my right lower lung kicked my butt. for nearly 3 weeks i was breathing underwater. through a very, very tiny straw. like those stir sticks you get with your fru-fru drinks. (yes, Adam, i mean you.)
then last sunday (not yesterday. the other one) i was suddenly clear. amazing. i love the human body.
anyway, last week i ran a nice, slow coupla miles. i didn't count them anywhere, but i got through them.
i had planned to run over the weekend, but they got put aside in favor of a few other things. and i was mostly ok with that. lemons into lemonade, right? right.
but today i was determined to do SOMETHING on the last day of Janathon. the Higdon schedule that I am considering following called for cross training today, but I really didn't feel like that. I wanted to RUN!
so i did.
earlier in the day Cathy, the wonderful maiden behind Janathon, let me know that both she and I had 22 miles for the month. I sent her a message that I would do 4.2 to make it a full marathon in 31 days. i know. wow, right? well, it is just kinda fun in a dumb kinda way. don't judge me, but i did a marathon, and it took me a MONTH. 31 days, too, not some wimpy February 28 day month. nope. the BIG ONE. 31 days.
but it has made me think of other goals. and other things. like cheese (foreshadowing. Auntie Boo, if you are reading this......). i also played a lot of 'go fish' and 'war' with Bryce. got to enjoy some bball games, and 'rescued' Mike when my truck left him stranded (oops).

even though i didn't run every day, or blog every day, Janathon provided me with new online friends, expanded my vocabulary, and has made me think about many things. so i count that as a WIN.
Thank you, Cathy, and all of the other JANATHONERS. (aren't you glad i didn't say, "fankoo"?)

Sunday evening, in the gym

I was nice and snug, curled up on the couch with my bestie. We'd settled down to watch some shows that she'd recorded after having put in a busy day (well, SHE did) around the house, and my mind was content. Right as I was starting to drift off (again), a voice said, "Aren't you going to run today?"
Wha? Huh? "oh, sure. I said. Right. I have to run today. bleh."
"well, YOU'RE the one who signed up for (in a sing-song voice) Janathon."
dag-nabbit. she was right. Janathon. oooh, how i love to hate thee, Janathon. And it is only the 9th day of our relationship.
After the show was over, I lazily gathered my stuff and gathered the energy to go run on the treadmill quickly jumped into my running clothes and ran out the door to the gym. When I got there, I was greeted by a croud of people that must have numbered somewhere close to 1. Actually, the place was empty.
I turned on the Food Network (my favourite thing to have on the tele) and was able to watch that burley guy from Dinner Impossible run around like Scrat chasing the ever-elusive prize. I had the volume turned off because I was listening to a random shuffle on the 'ol mp3.

After about 3/4 of a mile, my middle region was telling me that i needed to stop and take care of business, but my brain was trying to convince the organs otherwise. In the end (aahahaha.... no pun intended) the three organs in my middle beat out the one organ in my cabesa and i stopped at one mile. Promptly took care of business, and was back on the mill. This time I turned the pace up a little bit, as the trax being played were more up beat. I continued to watch the chef run around as I ran on and on. I decided that I would to until the end of the show so that i could see how he (once again!) got in right under the wire and everything was happy in chef-land and there were no burned forearms or scalded fingers or singed eyebrows in the kitchen made up of mostly non-cooking staffers who got roped into the deal for one reason or another. I love it when a plan comes together.

So i ran for a total of 4 leisurely miles. When I got back home, I thanked my coach and took a shower. We then ate, settled back on the couch, and Bryce fell asleep in my lap. Another day, another day.

FYTO5K and Janathon

This is what happens when worlds collide...
Ok, not really as dramatic as all that. Not even close. But it is a line from one of my favourite songs, so what the hey.
Yesterday, Saturday, was the Freeze Your Thorns Off 5K virtual race, hosted by Adam. I didn't get out the door to do it during daylight hours, so i went out at night. I had been told that there was some game on TV involving small horses from Indianapolis, and decided to go while they were playing. Wise choice.
I gathered my gear:

I got all of my clothes on, filled a water bottle, and sampled a Banana Strawberry GU. Bryce tried a dollop, too. His comment was, "Dad, when i get older, you can get me some of this for my birthday." Ok, little man, Ok.
I re-checked the race information just to be sure that I was going on the right day, or that i had enough time left in the day, to get this 5k done. I had been reading tweets all day from other participants, and their times were coming in around 15-20 minutes faster than my predicted time.
But that's ok, right? My only competition is ME (and Mother Nature, in this case). NeilZee raced in the arctic tundra near Calgary, barefoot, so I should be able to tackle this.
When I got to the designated parking area, I was a bit nervous; it was eerily empty:

Hmm....well, i paid my fee, so i ran. I love this trail. I have been on it many, many times, in most kinds of weather, since i discovered it a few years ago. I've taken Bryce on it, Tracey, Zach for a little bit, and Riley. I know pretty much every turn, every up and down. I can anticipate where I can rest a bit, and where i just need to push it and get over the top.

That mostly changed last night. The cold air sapped my lungs. The inadequate amounts of energy that I had consumed through the day left me a bit flat. But I ran on.
I lost the trail a few times, but was able to get back on without too much trouble. Others had left foot prints all around, so it was easy to get side tracked. A good adventure, to be sure. Even with a few signs along the way, it was still interesting. One of my favourite things about running at night in the woods is that your head lamp forces you to focus. All you can see is what is illuminated by your light. Beautiful.

At the turn around point I sent a text message to Tracey to let her know that I had made it half way, and then trudged back up the hill that I had just caromed down. THAT wasn't fun.

Near the beginning/end, there is a section of trail that goes through a tunnel of evergreens. I love that part of the trail, and last night was no let down. I had to duck as I ran to avoid knocking the freshly fallen snow down my back.
When i got back to the truck, i checked my time, and I was very happy with the result. Not the fastest time I have run this trail, but certainly the best I've done at night in winter. I may have to try to improve this as the season progresses. I leave you with some pics. Have a Great Sunday, and get ready for a FANTASTIC WEEK!!

OH! I almost forgot. This race was billed as a CLOTHING OPTIONAL event. I understand that there was a group who was surprised when one of their...umm...members showed up nude. Or maybe not. I can't be sure. Anyway, here is my obligatory nude photo from the race. You have been warned....

sorry, gotta run.

yesterday i was really hoping to crank out a nice steady 8 miles on the mill after work. just felt like i 'needed' some time to clear my head. for various reasons i was not able to have the time window that i require for 8 miles (say, 3 hours...heh heh heh), so i stormed around my office shaking my fist in rage had to readjust my wishes for the evening. I tweeted:
"wanted to run for an hour or more tonight, but my window has been reduced to only 25 minutes. bag it or do it anyway? #treadmill"
tick-tock, tick-tock...would anyone answer? would 'they' let me off the hook? I actually didn't have to wait long:

262milejourney  said this:

"@boutdrz do it anyway."

dang it!

around 5 of 4 i got changed and then headed downstairs right at 4. if i didn't have an office mate, i would do this every day. but she is a clock watcher, so no sneaking out early for me! (she doesn't work on Fridays, so....) Anyway, I got down there and the place was empty. before i got to the dreadmills, though, another RN came in. she works on the machines in her street clothes nearly every day. i think that she catches a bus because she is always in and out before 420. very happy for her that she is consistent about utilizing her time well. i should take note.

I pulled up a track from AudioFuel that i've had kicking around my mp3 player since last summer. It is a BETA version of an interval workout that goes like this:

5 minute warm up at 150 bpm.

30 seconds at 190 (bpm) (managable. feels good to stretch it out. mill speed at 9mph)

60 sec at 150

45 sec at 194 (hmm. a bit different than 190. i expected less of a difference. mill at 9.4)

60 sec at 150 (ah. can i make it 90 seconds? no? ok. fine.)

60 sec at 196 (ummm...WHAT? can my legs keep up? getting strange looks from that other RN. mill at 9.6)

60 sec at 150 (annnd JUMP! onto the rails. whew. ahhh...pause mp3. i'll get my extra 15 seconds while the mill slows. the big one is next. yes, yes, i hear you, AudioFuel. "get ready." fine. i'm ready. LEMME HAVE IT!)

75 sec at 200 (mill set at 10. i swear i smelled smoke. maybe it was my legs, as i didn't use body glide. i dunno. anyway, the mill is humming along, i am running fast, concentrating on a spot on the wall across the room so i don't look away and break stride and then fall and then get stuck between the (WHAT??? it has only been 15 seconds????) wall and the mill going at 10 FREAKISH mph and have all my skin sanded off of my body. okokokok. yes, yes, take deep breaths, yes, yes....wait, what did he just say? "This is what the world looks like at 200 bpm"? ummm....from where i stand, it looks the same as it did at 150, or even 10 bpm. holy crap. i don't think i can hang on much longer here but i have to do this i want to do this this is pretty cool i don't think that i could have done this 2 years ago. WHAT? HALF WAY THERE???? DARN YOU AUDIOFUEL! I am SO greatful to have been given this BETA track.....why is the RN walking toward the emergency phone while keeping here eyes on me? "That's the top of the pyramid, sorted." comes the voice in my ears.

ANNNNND JUMP!

so i made it to the top. wow. yes, i still had the way down to go, but it all seemed so easy. (not really)

quite a great workout, and it was done in about 25 minutes. this morning i can still feel it in the tops of my thighs and in my hips. feels good to stretch out my stride. i tend to get lazy on the mill. 

will be running in the FYTO5K this afternoon, or tonight. I have a nice woodsy trail all picked out. Freshly fallen snow should lure the snowshoers who will (i hope) pack the trail down nicely. it has been billed as 'clothing optional', but unless i can find some chipmunks who can work a camera, there will be NO race photos...

hey, treadmill. been coming here long?

yesterday, Janathon 4th, I had a date with the treadmill.
let's just keep it PG and say that there was some sweat and some creaking, but i was glad to leave after our time was over.
will i be back? oh, you bet. for at least two reasons.
1) it is Janathon
2) it is too cold outside for me to run comfortably or safely. no real sidewalks where we live, and the roads aren't in fantastic shape.
ok, so that was more than two reasons.

having a bit of fun on the 'mill lately, actually, so i am looking forward to tonight's session. i wish that there was a way that i could jot things down while i ran so that i don't forget them. bunches of ideas flow through my noggin while i run, but afterward i have a hard time recalling them. hmmm...
as an aside, did anyone else watch that train wreck last night on NBC? Lordy, what have we done? I think that there should be a show where they take an average fitness group of people and train them to do something great, like a sub 3 marathon or an IronMan. Train for a body building competition or something. Let us see average folks do great things, instead of people who have wrecked their lives being pushed through unsafe routines and instant life changes.
Of course, the DVR is set to record next week's show. Call me a "casualty vampire", but I'll still tune in.
Like last night, though, I'll likely have #fitchat going on my twitter feed. things happen so fast there, though, it is tough to multitask. totally worth it, though.

enough for now, peeps. nothing too drastic or dramatic here today. i am working on a post about cheese that i hope to have ready in time for the weekend. hint: lemons into lemonade.
peace, yo!

Janathon the 3rd

And on the 3rd day, I fouled up my scheduling and wasn't able to get out of the house to run. what to do, what to do? I have a new TRX set that TLW gave me for Christmas.....so i set that up downstairs and did some Atomic Push-ups (sounds like a VS product, doesn't it?), some arm curls, and some squats.
then, out of the corner of my eye, i saw an oft-neglected piece of exercise equipment. what could it be? well, yes, it was none other than the revolutionary Gazelle, hawked by that guy Tony with the mullet. remember that? ohhh, yes you do! before the ab-roller 6000 and the shake weight, we had the Gazelle!
With that in mind, I leave you with this inspirational video. The sequence lasted about 25 minutes, which, again, is about a 5k, but i spared you, my dear reader, from having to watch this for 25 minutes. Video-graphy credits go to Zacher, mad editing skills are mine, and the sound track belongs to some guy named Copeland. And i don't mean Sting. (Although you might be tempted to call the Police after watching this.)

Please note that I am wearing my RoadID during this exercise. I never know when Tracey might come to her senses and chuck me out onto the curb. I'd want my remains to be easily identified....wouldn't you?

1.1.11

move along, there's nothing to see here.
got up in our hotel with plenty of time to do a nice run. went back to sleep. got up again a little while later to do a  halfway decent run, but went back to sleep. finally got up with just enough time to squeeze in a lazy 2 mile run. route took me past an indoor climbing facility that i visited during my transition from my former life to my current life. during that time, all hell had broken loose for me. sadly, it was all my undoing. happily, i am in a better place now than i have ever been. more on that later.
this entry isn't for that.
glad i finally got up and got to get out for the run. Thank you, @janathon_ for pushing me.
 i am at my BIL's house in Maryland until tomorrow evening, so this post, like my run, is short and to the point. more like this tomorrow, with a real run and post starting Monday.
Happy New Year, everyone.
Here's to moving on from the things that anchor us to our past and to making new waves in the future!

-g-