My husband will be the first to tell you, I am not a morning person! My body/mind takes quite awhile to process the daylight. There’s like some mega-thick filter in my head that takes the sun (or any light for that matter) to sift though before it registers (slowly) in my head…”Hey, it’s uh, morning…time…to…get..up”. Recently, I’ve been trying to really balance family life and work life with like, maybe a smidgen of “me” time. I figured out that if I want any sort of a workout without interfering with family or work, then I better get up before my family is up and about. Yeah right.

Well Facebook comes in handy for some things, finding out how many cows your friends have in Farmville, who’s dating (or not dating) who, and also for finding motivation! I posted that I was looking for a running buddy  for a 5:30am run through town. I figured no one would speak up (or that maybe it wouldn’t make the “live news feed” headlines…) but it did and two people responded. Two of the best runners in town! Yipes! One who has “mastered running” and the other who just keeps getting stronger and stronger at triathlons and the like!

And so the morning arrived. There was no light to sift through the anti-awake filter so no worries there. I stumbled to the bathroom where the night before, I had layed out my attire from head to toe to amphipod. What a good idea that was! Everything I needed right there at my finger tips and I’m sure my husband appreciated the silence in the bedroom as well! After getting all geared up and chowing down on a banana and Cutie (love those lil guys!), I was ready to head out the door. I was still a bit tired as I stumbled out the door but once the cold air hit my face like a winter super-soaker…I was AWAKE!!! I tell ya, have trouble waking up or feeling alert? Just step outside and try below freezing! It was so cold that the water in my amphipod was ice cold even when I got back to the house! Awesome!

We set out right at 5:30 from the local post office and made our way around the lake to the ADT trail. This takes us past the creek and over the big hill. The dreaded “big hill”. I used to avoid that hill at all costs! On my bike I would get off of the trail and power around the hill on the street and then quickly get back on the trail…hoping no one had seen my cop out. I was able to keep pace with them until then. I was a good 10-15 feet back by the time we got to the top. At least I made it! We continued the run all the way to the school I teach at then back to town. We finished in about 32 minutes and besides being super cold, it was a great 4.23m run! I’m now actually looking forward to more early morning running! Then maybe my husband can tell you I’m a morning person!! But until then…

Last night was my office holiday party. I work at a small startup ad agency, so we hooked ourselves up modestly with a reserved table at a bar in NYC called Rye House. Most people approach office parties with a plan of poise and pace so as not to become that guy. Well, I think we all had the goal of becoming him as quickly as possible.

Rye house has an awesome cocktail menu that started me off right (or wrong, depending on how you see it). I started with the house punch.

We all started talking, having a good time. After some drinking we went in for food. I find this is always a fatal (excellent) approach: start drinking hard liquor before you eat. Guaranteed sloppy night + hangover.

In keeping with the impending doom that we knew awaited us tomorrow, all the food available was either fried, cheesy, pastry, or meaty. I had a bite of everything below. My coworkers were cheering me on in shock because they think I only eat carrots and coffee. I couldn’t believe I was eating this stuff myself. But dammit, I was drunk and hungry. What do you want?

The tomfoolery went on until around well into the night, and then we all hopped into cabs exclaiming we weren’t showing up at the office until noon the next day. I went home. My stomach went into shock. At 3am I woke up and crawled to the bathroom. Nothing happened.. though I wish it did ’cause I would’ve felt better! I laid in my bed with my hands on stomach until I fell asleep.

Then I did the unthinkable after a night of mayhem. I went running. In 28 degrees. With a hangover. At 8am.

It was brutal. I got a stitch ten minutes into it and had to take walking breaks. I did a small loop of about 2.5 miles, and couldn’t wait to get back to my apartment. I think i do need to invest in warmer running tights by the way if I keep heading out in this weather. When I got in the hot shower, my thighs stayed red and cold the entire time. Like robot legs. Weird.

Are you a die-hard, up-with-the-sun runner, or do you prefer to do your workouts in the evening, after the workday has finished? If you’ve dabbled in both, do you notice a difference in how you feel and how you perform?

Though no thorough studies have been completed at this point, it is widely acknowledged that most people can get their heart rate up significantly higher in the afternoon or evening when compared with the morning. Is this because your body is still adjusting from a period of sleep during morning workouts? Or maybe it’s higher in the evening because you’ve been busy digesting food and (likely) ingesting caffeine all day?

Whatever the cause of heart rate differences, the real item up for debate is what it means for your workouts. Are you more efficient in the morning? Or are your evening workouts more beneficial since you can work at a higher heart rate? The jury seems to be out, as you can see in this article, published by the New York Times.

Take a look, and let us know your experience. Have you ever noticed a difference? Which time of day is best? Or is it a trivial thing for the average runner (or anyone) to even think about?

This morning I was determined to get some sort of workout in. I was successful in hitting up the gym Monday and Tuesday, but I had an 8am conference call this morning. I would have had to take it from the locker room. Not an option.

I decided, I would go outside starting at my Greenpoint park, try a run (again), and worst case scenerio I would walk/run, or sprint/jog, to get my heartrate up and a good sweat in a small amount of time. Because less time equals less time in the cold.

I put on the following mix of technical and non-technical running gear for a 30 minute, 30 degree workout:

• my new long sleeve Asics thermopolis shirt
• a regular Gap zip-up hoody over that
• technical running tights from high school. at least 8 years old. doubt there’s any “technical” properties left.
• running gloves that i scored from runworldwide.com when we sponsored the Wineglass marathon a few years ago
• an old winter hat from H&M- the label says 100% acrylic

post winter run wave

This time around, I felt good! I was warm, dry, and thought to myself “this is not bad! I can do this every morning!”. My face was chilly, definitely, the inch of ankle skin peeking between my sneakers and tights sucked, but overall I felt securely warm everywhere else.

And here’s what I believe the secret to be: THE HAT.

From now on, every run in 40 degrees or less will start out with a winter hat on. That’s where so much warmth escapes from, as all our moms told us when we were growing up. If you didn’t listen to her, listen to me (maybe). It’s true. And hat’s are where it’s at.

P.S. what a sweaty, unattractive photo of me. happy holidays

P.P.S. Check out my friend Becca’s blog for a sweet coffee giveaway

This morning I knocked out 4.6 Miles here. That is the longest distance I’ve ever squeezed in before work. Victorious! I ran through three distinct Brooklyn neighborhoods and saw the morning routines and nuances of three different cultures (Hipster–is this a culture? Hasidic, and Hispanic).

Looking at this small loop it seems impossible that there can be such abrupt changes in the people who live here. If I went even farther out I would’ve hit a fourth, without a doubt. Welcome to Brooklyn friends. I personally think it’s one of the borough’s best attributes.

I got to work at 8:15am today, and worked until 8:15pm. I feel like my eyes are dried up apricots (at least I chose something tasty for a comparison) and my body is going to give out. I need to go to sleep ASAP and sleep for a long time.

On the flipside.. I didn’t run this morning. I would like to run tomorrow morning–but I’m SO TIRED.

Two days ago I was attempting to run 3 miles, and couldn’t make it without walking in between due to knee pain. Bullocks! On the plus side, I walked down some streets I usually pass right by and discovered some cute bars plus a new coffee shop called LaGreca on Wythe and South 1st. It must be new because the only indication of the storefront were two paper signs in the window. Sweet, more coffee!

mm hmm.

When I got home from that run-walk on Monday morning I was feeling slightly defeated, but also proud that I finally learned. I used to think it was all or nothing–”If I’m not running, what’s the point? Forget it.” Wah. Wah. Shut up mel.

What an unfortunate mindset I had, because that’s just not true. I got out there, and even though I couldn’t do the speed I wanted, I kept the distance the same and paced smart to keep from getting more injured. And then, on Tuesday, I did the unthinkable.

Zumba Class.

After work on Tuesday, having no run in the morning figuring my knee needed a rest, I decided to hit the gym (NYSC) for the first time since March.*

The workout? Eh. It was an hour of a bunch of different dancing techniques: salsa, samba, raggae, cha cha, merengue, African, and probably one or two more. The teacher was energetic and spunky. It was fun, but I wouldn’t say it was a kick-ass workout. My ass was not kicked. But it was shaken in rhythm, yes. I don’t think I’ll venture back to this class. There were others who were definitely getting a sweaty workout, so more power to them. But if you’re one of those people who needs a serious drill seargant pain sesh–it’s not here.

More Miles

Wednesday morning I woke up and ran 3.5 miles here. No knee pain! GLORY. Rest and zumba did me right for a day.

I feel obligated to remind you that I didn’t run for two weeks prior to the knee pain. Rest is relative, people. And I am the master of abusing it. But I always come back, and I’m always thankful.

*note: I’ve been paying $70 a month for a NYSC membership while my ass has not seen the gym for 8 months (running outside). I’m investing in my piece of mind? … Someone knock some sense into me.

After returning from a run-less visit to Ireland, I wrote about having the comeback run butterflies on my first day out. If you follow my blog, you’ll know I face this run often and worry about it like a kid on the first day of school–anxious and wearing my best running clothes for an extra mental perk.

The outcome of the run on Saturday, of course, made me feel great and hopeful. It filled me with dreams of “really getting serious this time” as it always does. Unfortunately, I am once again battling a bout of runner’s knee (read more about what runner’s knee is like here) which has kept my past two runs switching between my usual pace (I’m guessing 9:30 miles?) to walking. Runner’s knee sucks.

But it’s not just the runner’s knee that has me worried this time–it’s that I’m attempting a comeback at the start of winter! AAaahh! Damn you really cold weather and dark mornings!

the non-technical zip attempt

I was talking to a friend last night about how she deals with running in the cold and she implored me (implored–good word!) to get technical gear saying it made all the difference in the world. My only current winter technical pieces are a pair of UnderArmour tights that I scored while working at runworldwide.com back in college, and what I thought was a technical zip-up by Lulumon that I got 60% off; though it turns out yoga gear is far from running gear because it pretty much holds my sweat tight against my skin and stays wet. But it was on sale! Notice a trend? I never want to spend the money on the expensive stuff.

However, I think if I want to have the guts (and glory!) of maintaining my runs in the winter I’ll have to dole out the cash and grab some good gear. Specifically I’m thinking some kind of pullover, a headband for my ears, and a giant panda bear to hug me when I’m shivering. Bear hugs are underrated.

To fight the morning darkness–even though I have given out tips for getting out of bed–I found this little alarm clock that fakes a sunrise before it goes off with gradual light exposure. Genius! Now if someone can send me a winning lottery ticket, I’ll get right on these purchases .

Winter? I’m still scared of you, but I am attempting to buy courage.

Aaah! I’m lacing up my sneaks, getting ready to head out for my return to running run. I need to remind myself of all the comeback runs I’ve had in the last year, and how I’m thankful after each one.. because I’m always apprehensive (ahh!) before I get outside.

What am I scared of? The same as usual: that I won’t be able to handle the distance, I will be as slow as a turtle–a very good looking turtle–and the runners of Brooklyn will all gather in front of my apartment when I return to laugh at me. Guys, don’t gather, really.

I woke up at 6am, had a bowl of oat bran for breakfast, a cup of instant coffee… and waited about two and a half hours. I told myself I have a date with destiny at 9:30. It’s 9:15 and I’m eating chocolate chips from the bag with one sneaker on.. thinking.. about.. every possible thing that can delay my getting outside. Maybe I’ll check my email one more time? Am i dressed warm enough? Should I charge my ipod a little more? .. why am I a crazy lady? At least I’m not a cat lady.

Okay. Go time. My goal is to get three miles in. Walking is allowed if needed. If anyone passes me by, please stop to give me a high five. I like high fives. Especially if your hands are warmer than mine on this cold morning. Bullocks.

This workout was good: I ran Tuesday morning

My alarm was set for 7:20, but someone emailed me at 5:55am (why?!) and the buzz of my blackberry was enough to wake me. I am clearly a very light sleeper. Not a log.

I thought to myself “what the hell? let’s go for it”. I made some instant coffee–sorry coffee friends, can’t brew that early–and threw on my gear. The weather forecast said rain later in the day, temperature about 50 degrees. I wore tights, a tee shirt, and a zip up sweatshirt (I recommend no hood that way it’s not bouncing behind you as you run).

I got outside, and dammit you lying weatherman, it was raining. Once again I thought “what the hell? keep goin’ for it”. I ran a small 2.6 mile loop here, and it felt good. Well, good as in yes, I like running, but I’m definitely out of shape due to 3 weeks off.

This workout was bad: I went to yoga Wednesday night.

running mel scowls at yoga

Yesterday was an overwhelming day from start to finish. Work has got me in a tizzy–I can’t believe I just said tizzy–due to very big projects, and a need for very big results. I had an excel sheet party all day long and at 6:30 my eyes fell out. Plus a truckload of personal antics that are eating away at me.

Warning: Yoga doesn’t always relax you. If you think it will calm down a shitstorm, that is false.

I went in there with negative energy, so maybe I threw off the whole zen of the room? But during the whole practice I wanted to scream and run out of there. Everyone around me was totally peaceful and I couldn’t even get a good inhale/exhale flow goin’. I knew right at the start it wouldn’t be smooth. And then I was trapped. Trapped in yogacity without a map. That was horribly cheesey. I’m aware.

Lessons learned*: Don’t be a menace to south central while drinking your juice in the hood.

Real lessons learned: If I’m freaking out, call someone to talk, don’t go to yoga. And running always rocks.

* that’s a movie. i swear.

Have you ever seen that episode of Sex & the City where Carrie’s computer dies and she freaks out? Yep, that was me on Sunday night. My 2.25 yr old Apple Mac Book was running a little bit slower than usual, but other than that everything was A-OK. Then in the middle of writing an email I got the “spinning color wheel of death” and was unable to force quit. I shut down, but only saw a scary blinking file folder/question mark upon restart. After 2 frustrating hours of trying to re-install the operating system software, run disk utilities, and re-setting the PRAM I still had no result.

I was lucky enough to snag a 1pm appointment with the Apple genius bar in SoHo the next day (usually you have to wait a few days for an appt), but the Mac tech had some bad news for me: “Your hard-drive failed and we can’t recover the data”. Uggggh. I could have replaced the hard-drive for a couple hundred dollars, but I put a lot of wear and tear on my laptop these past few years and I was worried that I’d have to buy a new machine in a few months anyway.

Soooo….I bit the bullet and left the store with a brand new Mac Book Pro (plus 3 years of Apple care extended warranty!). This was a pretty hefty investment and my bank account is NOT happy right now, but a laptop is essential to my life  and I know I’ll get my money’s worth. However, I’m going to be watching my budget veryyyy carefully over the next few monthes. It’s a good thing I like pb&j!

Photo courtesy of my cell phone camera. Can’t believe I just bought a new laptop.  Ahhhh!

Anyway, here’s hoping Tuesday will be a better (and less expensive day)! I started the morning off with my usual cup of coffee and a mini lemon zest luna bar. I love the little snack size bars!

About 7:30am, Alma and I headed out for a run in Central Park. The weather was a bit chilly, but once we started to sweat the breeze felt nice. My legs felt pretty stiff (between Saturday and Sunday I ran 17 miles…), but otherwise I felt OK. We finished our 8 mile run in 1 hour, 13 minutes (a bit over 9:00/mile pace).

After a bit of foam rolling and the quickest shower ever, it was off to work!

Gulped lots of water on the subway and then threw together a quick breakfast at my desk: a container of Stonyfield plain yogurt, 1/4 cup raisins, 1/2 banana, and a cup or so of Kashi cinnamon Heart-2-Heart.

Plus, an adora calcium supplement! I don’t always mention it, but I usually have two of these 500mg calcium + vitamin D + vitamin K supplements per day. Tastes just like chocolate

A visit from Mr. Softee – A miraculous milkshake?

From the NY Times: Probiotics, Health or Hype?

Attention New Yorker readers: Would you be interested in meeting up on Saturday evening?? Assuming I survive the 1/2 marathon that morning, I have a little event planned for the evening hours:-)

Send me an email: runnerskitchen@gmail.com

Maybe it’s because I’ve been cutting down on coffee, or maybe I’m made of magic; but my runs have been rocking and full of energy. I vote for the magic theory.

Yesterday morning I set out to do an Ewald workout, and unlike my last attempt, this one was very successful. I started my day at 6:15am with half a cup of coffee and a small piece of bread with jelly. I also had 7 solid hours of sleep behind me which I think makes all the difference.

My Tuesday run centered around the McCarren Park track in Williamsburg and looked like this:

picture courtesy of google. sweet bird.

• .5 mile warmup to the track
• 8 push ups (modified on my knees due to lack of pythons) and 40 bicycle crunches
• 4×100 sprints with 100 recovery in between
• Repeat steps 2 and 3
• 8 push ups and 40 bicycle crunches (total of 3 sets)
• 1 mile cool down

I was very happy with this workout and my chest is still sore today. I’d like to change my next Ewald workout up with some new strength moves and maybe 200’s instead of 100’s. Variety is the spice of life?

This morning’s run was equally awesome. I finally did a different route than usual, and ran over the Pulaski Bridge to Long Island City. This is a pretty cool bridge for me to run over in the morning because the total distance over and back is about 3.5 miles. I also get to look down onto the entrance of the Midtown Tunnel which is interesting. I like running over traffic. Maybe I’ll spit off of the bridge next time and see if I can hit a car. Just kidding..

But seriously.

One thing that cannot  be taken for granted in NYC is the weather. Seasons come and go like traffic (quick, erratic, unpredictable) and perfectly sunny + breezy days invite swarms of people out to the streets to soak it up.

Planning ahead to take advantage of the cool weather for some serious running, I was successful in my party/alcohol management this weekend and didn’t get a visit from Hangover Harry once. If he came to your house instead, I’m so sorry I let him loose.

Friday night after work I met my friend Amanda for some Mexican food and drinks at a random restuarant we walked past in Chelsea called Salsa Y Salsa. I sipped on a mojito while she got the sangria happy hour special:

she was successful.

The drinks and food were both weak (mad wack, yo). I would recommend you don’t try this place.

Saturday morning I woke up naturally at 6:30am (victory!) and ran a sweet 4.5 miles here from my place down through South Williamsburg and back. Warning: TMI ahead. I started out feeling like a rocket, but somewhere around mile 3 I really had to go to the bathroom. Every step I took I felt my bladder dying inside. I tried to trick my mind and focus on the scenery, but you just don’t get used to the feeling. Bouncing up and down–bad idea all around. I ran frantically in search of a coffee shop that might let me use their restroom but it wasn’t even 8am yet, so NOTHING was open. I ended up slowing down to a walk for maybe 6 blocks to give my bladder a break from the pressure. Eventually I starting running again (very fast) and jetted straight home. Internal mutiny?

Also- I ran before eating anything and I definitely noticed a drop in energy during the run. If I have time in the future I need to eat breakfast first.

Sunday morning I did have time to eat breakfast first (apple, yogurt + granola) and holy moses it made such a difference. I don’t know where this run came from. It was glory. I haven’t had one of these in a while and it was the final proof I needed that I’m back. My 5 run comeback theory was right on.

The motion in my body felt so natural I wasn’t even thinking about how far or how fast I was going. I just let the run guide itself, and mapped it when I came home. The result was 4 smooth miles here, after which I did a victory dance that included the running man*.

I’d also like to note that my calves were very sore both Saturday and Sunday after my runs. I don’t know if I’ve ever really been sore in that area and I’m not sure why all of a sudden now? My best theory is that I’ve been wearing high heeled boots in the cooler weather + no running for 2 weeks = my calf muscles got tight. I was hobbling around all night last night. I probably looked awesome.

Today I’m taking a rest day because I don’t want to overwhelm myself, and I’ll also give my calf muscles time to heal the ef up (heal the ef up guys!). I’ll leave you with a picture of this morning’s sunrise in Union Square:

7:30am, NYC

Total week 1 miles: 14.7. On to comeback week 2!

* I made a running man instructional video if you’d like to learn. Email me for details.

** No, I didn’t.

It’s always  mentally daunting for me to get back in the game after more than 2 weeks off, but it really only takes about 5 runs to be in it to win it again. I’ve gotten in 4 runs in this week which feels great. And by great, I mean saweeeeet.

My mileage is fairly low, but I dig it:

- Sunday: 2.6m

- Monday: 2.6m

- Tuesday: mini Ewald workout

- Friday: 3m

I passed out at 9:45 last night, and woke up at 6am today without an alarm. Woohoo! I made my instant coffee just before Mike 1 got up to brew a pot. Bullocks. But we chilled on the couch for 10 minutes with our respective cups o’ joe none the less. I drank about half a mug. Then it was off to get my gear on.

Today is the first day of the fall season that I donned a long sleeve t-shirt. Don’t you love running in those? I started out with the sleeeves pulled over my hands (cozy) and by mile 1 I was rolling them up. Perfect temperature transitional gear. A good ol’ cotton shirt. Most runners would think running in cotton is crazy, but I rarely spree for expensive technical gear.

I ran a 3 mile loop here and it rocked. At the halfway mark my runner’s knee started to kick-in, but it ended up fading away. Check plus.

On my way to work I picked up a post-run breakfast of 1 egg on whole wheat toast (salt, pepper, ketchup. yeah.) and a cup of coffee. Egg sandwiches always do the trick when I have a crazy morning at work and lunch will be late. Breakfast of mel championship. I’m not sure if that last sentence works, but I’m not changing it.

Technically this brings my coffee total to 1.5 cups already. Oh well, it’s freakin’ Friday. Tonight I’m meeting a friend for drinks in the city.. and if I can keep a Saturday long run in the back of my mind maybe I’ll minimize hangover damage?

This morning I set out to do an Ewald workout, i.e. more than a typical morning loop.

My alarm went off at 6:15am, and the sun was not out yet which made it painful. I’ve been using my tips from my morning darkness post to get myself up and out, and I’d like to add washing your face to the list. A nice slap of cold water always shocks the shit out of me.

Sans coffee, I left my place at 6:50 and headed towards the McCarren Park track in Williamsburg. My head was heavy with sleep, and was throbbing while I ran which was not a good sign. I got to the park which is about a 1/2 mile away, and felt out of it.

None the less, I pushed through the best I could and the workout looked like this (looks kinda weak, mel):

• .5 mile run to the track
• 4×100 sprints with 100 recovery
• 2×30 bicycle crunches
• 2×100 sprints
• .5 mile run home
• walk up and down the block and enjoy the blue sky until the head throb goes away

The grass was wet so I didn’t do pushups, but I go the crunches in on the side of the track. Yes, I could have done the pushups in my living room when I got in.. but I did not guys.. I did not. If Ewald knew he would scold me.

I feel semi-successful, which is more than nothing. Three cheers to best effort!

[Cheers! Cheers! Cheers!]

My return to running has once again reminded me why I’m obsessed with it. Running makes me feel good. Is there a better reason than that? Yeah there’s all that lifetime of healthy for you crap, but that’s kind of the long run side-benefit (long run? pun? bonus).

Oh yes.

Running makes me mentally stronger instantly. I think this is why I have trouble sticking with a weight training plan–it’s much less immediate. Although I do know cross-training is worth it, and I’m aiming to make tomorrow an Ewald day. Click on Ewald if you want to read more about the “we are how we move” theory.

Coffee Side Note:

Yesterday was the first day in 2 weeks that I only had 1 cup of coffee. I’ve been out of control lately and my brain really is like mush until I drink 2 cups. Yesterday I had a busy day and didn’t have time to stop at 2pm to get second a cup. The result? At 8pm, it was the weirdest thing… I felt great. What? Great. Woohoo! This week I will try to stick to one a day. Then maybe soon none a day… which Matt the No Meat Athlete is currently attempting. Brave Soul. You can read about my thoughts on caffeine here.

Back to today:

I woke up before Mike 1 again this morning (which means no coffee brewed) and this time remembered my instant coffee routine but only took about 5 sips before leaving around 6:45am. I stuck with my 2.6 mile loop, and felt freakin’ awesome. I ran my last mile at 8 minute pace. Rockin!

Thanks again to you all for helping me get back into the game. Party on Wayne.

P.S. Instant Pleasure is a Rufus Wainwright song that’s pretty good. Check it out if you’re feelin’ crazy.

6:41

Some blog readers friends left me words of encouragement over the past week, and last night two comments finally hit me (thank you team). Before I went to sleep I reset my alarm for 6:15 instead of the recent 7:15 and decided to get my running back.

I’m sitting here with my gear on, some motivational music in the background, and am so nervous I have to write it down. Ah! Mike 1 is also still asleep.. which means no coffee.. although as I write this I’m remembering I have instant coffee but I think it’s too late (no time to brew!).

The plan is to attempt 2.6 small miles, and I’m prepared to walk when necessary. How much damage can 2 weeks do? I’ll let you know later today how it went. Ohjeez. And yes, those are small miles, not big ones.

9:30

My run (here) was a mix of awesome and dammit this morning

lungs: My lungs are definitely not where they were 2 weeks ago.. that was the one thing I felt the most today. It was that feeling you get when you run after getting over a cough.. just kind of like you’re pushing the capacity in there. I’m confident this will go away in no time if I get back into my routine.

legs: There were no jelly legs, but my ‘runner’s knee’ started to kick in during the last half mile. It usually acts up right when I start up running after some off time.. so that would be right about now, wouldn’t it. Okay, makes sense. Thanks for reminding me, Mr. Knee. you’re fired.

mind: I got the chills 3 times while running- in a really good way. The most notable when “Sugar High” came on my ipod (the version from Empire Records with Gina on the mic) and I pretended to be her…

a girl can dream

Thanks for the motivation friends. It felt good to be out there today.

August is coming to an end, which means the sunrise is slowly moving back. It’s so freakin’ hard to jump out of bed in the morning when it’s still dark out!

I fight the morning darkness every fall and winter (I’m a superhero) and get my ass out the door to run. There are a few tricks I’ve developed over the years to make this a less painful and more heroic experience.

morning super hero

Tips to get up & out before sunrise:

• As soon as your alarm goes off, turn on the light. The longer you linger in bed and let the dimness sink in, the more glazed you’ll get and decide to screw the workout and go back to sleep for another hour (I’m guilty).
• Get your workout gear ready the night before and set it out near your bed. It’s like an invisible boyfriend waiting for you in the morning. Don’t disappoint him.
• Put on some tunes. Music will help wake you up and get your head in the zone. If you share a room with with your significant other just throw on your headphones.
• Coffee.
• Try to put yourself in the mindset of how you’ll feel post-run (happy and fulfilled).

Bring it on autumn.

I’ve been reading alot about the primal lifestyle philosophy and came across a photo of these identical twins named Otto on the right and Ewald on the left. These men have the same genetic makeup, yet look very different:

Both brothers were athletes within the track and field realm. So why is Ewald slammin’ but Otto’s slackin’? Otto was a distance runner… and Ewald competed in field events like shotput.

This case really illustrates that our bodies are defined by how we use them. Honestly it scared the shit out of me, because I do not want to be lame Mr. Otto. So I decided to focus a lot more on strength training and cross-training moving forward to bring my inner-Ewald out (inner-Ewald.. we all have one).

I changed up my morning workout today due to this inspiration:

• run .5 miles to the track
• 4×200 sprints with 200m recovery in between
• 2×8 sets of push-ups (girl style)
• 2×20 bicycle crunches
• repeat steps 3-5
• run .5 miles home

This kicked my ass harder than my normal 3 mile morning run. I will be sore tomorrow. Glory. Let’s call this the Ewald challenge.

This morning’s run let me know that I might be getting sick again. Nooooo!

I passed out cold last night at 10pm, and woke up without an alarm at 6:08am. Love when that happens; natural awakenings feel so much better than abusive alarm clocks.

My initial plan was to run 3.2 miles, but once I got out on the road I felt an intensity in my lungs that wasn’t right. The feeling was similar to the sensation of your first run after getting over a cough. Besides my insides (the most important part?) my body felt strong.

I didn’t want to push the distance since I knew something was off, so I cut the 3.2 miles a little short and ran a 2.9 mile loop here. On the way back I felt really good, and my pace was definitely faster than usual. I like being able to feel improvement.

In coffee news:

On my way walk to the L train this morning, I stopped at Variety for a cup of coffee, and came across a new take on sugar; vanilla bean infused simple syrup (sugar water). This is the straight up way to add vanilla to coffee.

Pretty cool. And tasty.

This weekend contained a lot of events and instead of making sure I got my long runs in, I made sure to do the summer right and get my butt to every party. I had a hell of a time at an engagement party, suffered a hell of a hangover, and then completed a day of apartment cleaning and quality friend hanging.

So my miles are down, but my good times are up!

slide 'n slide.. for real

I did get out there this morning thankfully, and took it easy on myself (mostly because I was scared that I lost it all) and ran a 2.6 mile loop here. I rocked it, and felt strong the whole way. Sweet. I will attempt to re-focus this week.. don’t attempt mel, do it!.. and get back up into the high 3’s, low 4’s in the morning.

I love days that I have events.  Of course this is mainly due to my love of every aspect of parties.  I love planning them, I love decorating them, and most of all I love watching them come to fruition and hopefully be a total and complete success.  Yet, in terms of this blog, I love days that I have events, because my work day starts anywhere from noon to three, enabling me to have almost a full day of “other stuff” before I head into work. 

 Today I spent the morning running a few errands around town, before heading over to my parent’s neighborhood for another cross-training bike ride.  This time, my neighbors were going for a jog, so we thought we could team up and make it a joint venture.  Note to self:  the speed of a bike is not nearly equivalent to the speed of two joggers.  Hence, it was an enjoyable and very relaxing ride for me and a speedy and exhausting run for the other two.  As enjoyable as it is to have company while exercising, I think that it might be best to be sure that we are all in agreement on the mode of transportation. 

 The down side to event nights, is that it is a pretty hectic 9+ hours, so it is sometimes difficult to find time to eat at all, much less the right thing.  I mean, come on, I am surrounded by lumpia, bacon wrapped scallops, crab dip, wedding cake, etc.  It is a never ending smorgasbord of amazing food around my work.  So in the attempt to keep my hands from snagging the fattening stuff, I decided to put my cooking skills to work and prep a little food of my own.  Tonight’s dinner was Thai Red Curry Chicken and Cauliflower.  Yum!  The recipe made four servings, so I left some for my mom, and took two with me.  I’ll eat one for lunch tomorrow.  Aren’t I the smart and efficient one!  It worked tonight.  I just hope I can keep it up.

 Tomorrow I am supposed to do 40 minutes again, and I work at 9:00.  That means 7:00 AM wake-up, so I better hit the hay.  Wish me luck!   AGHHHH

It is hot, hot, hot.  I decided to get up early this morning and run before work.  Now, I didn’t have to work until 10, so by early I mean 8 AM.  This has become early to me, but is nothing compared to when I worked in the school system and had to be at work by 7:00 AM.  Trying to work out in the mornings then, was a nightmare.  I AM NOT A MORNING PERSON. Now, it is not so bad.   I thought running in the morning might be a little cooler, but no such luck.  But I pushed myself any way, and made it a little further today.  No matter how difficult the exercise is, the feeling of accomplishment is well worth it, when I finish.  I just need to remind myself of this, when I am trying to get up an hour early.

Since I am on this mission to better myself, I have incorporated eating better into my routine as well.  I am following a very popular program that is all about making good choices, and I am trying to do so.  This is not easy, especially when I work at a catering facility that has a truly great chef!!  The key, I guess, is to bring my own food to work, but again, that requires preparation, pre-thought out meals and getting up even earlier, to make them before work.  Oh the frustrations of becoming a healthier person.  I really would like to have my own personal chef that could make all of my meals healthy and tasty, and I wouldn’t even have to think about it.  Unfortunately, I have not recently won the lottery, so this is out of the question.  And, truly, I do love to cook, so I would miss that aspect of it, I guess I just need a personal dishwasher.

Oh Yeah, it’s the 20^th, 10 more days until I can no longer say “I just turned 30.”  Now I will actually be IN my 30s.  Yuck!

Whew, what a whirlwind yesterday was. Wizard of Oz twister style. I think I’m the witch under the house.

Today’s goal: Calm it down, and take it slow.

I did get my 3.2 mile run in this morning (here) which ended up being sans music because I left my ipod at work last night. The first thing I thought was AAaahh! No music?!?! But then I reminded myself that I’ve run without tunes before and I’m always grateful for it. I was right. Thanks for the advice mel.

I’ve been listening to music while I run everyday for so long that it actually took me a minute to remember my breathing rhythm sound because I wasn’t used to hearing it. Reality check: it’s important to run without headphones every once in a while to learn your body’s flow and absorb everything around you. I liked it. But tomorrow will include the music.

Since I’ve been running around like crazy throughout my week, I drank a glass of emergen-c as soon as I got in the door to help fight any possible on-coming illness. The flavor of the week is pomegranate, and this shot is during the foaming/fizzing action:

purple elixer

It’s 2pm, I’m at the office, and my goal of taking it easy is accomplished so far. Yes, there is a lot of work to do, but if I breathe in and out slowly (and continue to drink coffee) I will remain calm, cool, and collected. Did I mention cool?

I said it. The cardinal rule of “there’s always time” has been broken.

This morning I woke up at 6:15, drank my coffee, and was out the door at 7 for a run. One step off my stoop and I abruptly turned around, came back inside, changed out of my running gear, and was at work by 7:45.

Wtf?

I just couldn’t do it, and I think there’s two reasons why. First of all, my job has been getting really crazy lately, as in no time to eat lunch and working 11 hour days. Sad story: on Monday I was so crunched for time, I ate a piece of stale bread that came with last week’s lunch salad just to calm my stomach since I couldn’t leave to grab lunch. Stale. bread. in my mouth. And, I was thankful to have it. Second of all– running the same loop every morning has it’s downside: routine boredom/burning out.

I knew today was going to be another intense day at the office with my team, and as I was getting ready to run I debated skipping it in favor of an early start. So I rationalized with myself: “mel, this is your time, your morning run. if you get in at 9:15 the day will still be the same, and you’ll be fine. you woke up at 6am to run, so take what you deserve.”

Great pep talk– it got me out the door. Only it didn’t last.

I started getting nervous about the amount of work ahead of me. Once the anxious feeling set in, I knew it would be with me the whole run and I would be racing myself to get back. There would no release, no good vibes, only panic. On a side note, I bet the panic run would’ve given me awesome mile splits.

I decided “I’ll feel a lot better if I just get my ass to work and get a head start on the day. Besides, I’m getting sick of this loop anyway.” So I did, and it might’ve helped ever so slightly. But you know what sucks? It stuck with me all day. On the commute into the city I definitely was feeling down on myself about not having my run in– like I gave up something that I couldn’t get back. I couldn’t even eat a normal breakfast because it was on my mind.

What’s the deal mel? I think running in the morning has become so engrained in my routine that I feel less accomplished or less strong when I miss it. Even writing this now, I know I’ll need to get out there tomorrow morning or else it will get worse.

But from the other perspective, my life is BUSY right now. Between work and plans after work, I really do feel like I don’t have time. Is this a classic work/life balance issue? Sounds like it. Am I typical? Maybe. But it’s real, and I’m trying to work it out.