winter running is expensive

so as y'all know, most of my running to date was in the summer, fall and balmy first half of this winter.practice started this morning, so last night i had to make a 11th hour trip to paragon to get basically everything but shoes.

i didn't get there until 7:15 and it closes at 8 and i was worried because i had no females with me to let me know when the spandex pants had gone horribly wrong. turns out, that was fairly obvious.

i've decided that women's running pants are the least flattering item of clothing i've ever encountered. for the most part there are two options.

option 1 - very tight tapered spandex, more like tights than pants. aside from the usual objections to spandex, as a shorter gal, i usually have issues with the taper because it never falls in the right place and i yet to encounter a petite line of running gear.

option 2 - an upside down pear shaped pant, that are somehow baggy-ish on top around the thigh, then tapered at the bottom! why oh why! i've definitely got curves, and these do nothing for them and are even *worse* than the spandex ones...

finally, fate intervened in the form of adidas, with a pair of pants that was baggy and tight in the right places. yeeeesss.

then there was the question of the layering. your first layer is supposed to wick the sweat away. okay, check, had that at home. layer two was supposed to both be warm (trap the heat) and continue to wick. layer three is supposed to provide warmth and be water/wind proof/resistant, but breathable. as you can imagine, you're talking high-tech clothing and that gets pricey.

so i look around and to add to my dilemma, everything is in pastel! (visual of me sticking my finger down my throat) because the store was probably raided by everyone else over the course of the week, basically anything that was not pastel was XXL. argh.

layer two was easy - a lilac/gray warm, wicking fleece thing. on sale. sweet. the third layer was harder. i had two options - something warm, windproof, water resistant and breathable or - not so warm, waterproof, and breathable (more like a shell). i hemmed and hawed and then saw the warm one was on sale, even if it was powder blue. done. 5 minute warning...hat, navy (i am breaking all sorts of matching rules), gloves, socks...check out...

"that'll be $229.00"

my face said it all. poor guy behind the counter said, it's not that bad...and it wasn't. it could have been much worse. but it was still over $200 bucks on "running stuff". pbth.

this morning though, when it was 20 degrees out, i was pretty happy to have all the stuff. coach christine would be proud. i managed to make it up to practice a little early even, and helped hand out name tags. i thought it would be a great way to meet some of the peeps, but of course, i don't really remember anyone's name soooo yeah. we'll see how that goes.

as mentors, the first few weeks are not about us. it's about make sure everyone's happy, safe, comfortable and encouraged to stick with it. so while i could have trained with the advanced group, i opted to stick with the beginner-intermediates. plus it was my first run since the marathon so i figured if i was feeling really fantastic i could always do the extra loop.

so i ended up running two lower loops (1.7 each loop). it was easy-breezy. everyone was in packs so i was even running ahead, coaching-style, stopping to walk or run with different people as we looped around. it went by really fast, and i hope that the people i talked to were more encouraged then annoyed, i confess i was a bit perky/optimistic. my friend sk8 (yes, nickname) did awesome, and was pleasantly surprised that she felt good. actually everyone looked really good and actually happy. it was very funny, i feel like after our first practice people looked much more scraggly. maybe it's because of all the layers and the cold, you don't get red exercise face as much.

then it was brunch with sis, and i'm hoping for warm weather tomorrow. my left knee did hurt a little bit, so i'm going to keep an eye on that, and we'll see how it goes.

i'm glad to be back.

today's mileage: 3.4
this season's mileage to date: 3.4

mama needs some new trainers

my plan was to run late today so i could enjoy the crazy-nice weather. i should have got up early in the morning and gotten it over with instead though, because going up to the park to run late on a sunday when you're tired and a little whiny.

but i did.

i set out around 5:30 for the park- we got a break this week since we had run 18 last week, so we "just" had to run 10-12. even though the mileage is so much lower, i still get nervous before these runs. weird? maybe but i do. they also have turned off all the water fountains, which is really annoying. so now we have to carry water in addition to our yummy goo snacks. i don't have a "water belt" yet (add it to the list of geeky accessories i need to buy) so i carried around a water bottle.

i opted for a full loop (6.2) and a middle loop (4). i tried a different approach for dealing with my mile 1-3 aches and pains. i acknowledged they were there, remembered they would go away, and tried to ignore them. it kinda worked, and by 30 minutes or so into it, i was cruising. well, maybe not cruising, but not going at a snails pace either.

once that happened, it was kind of strange to know that i was not going to get too tired or sore for the rest of the run. i have, after all, run 18 miles! =) i almost was...bored? i think because it was not a huge challenge, and my tunes are getting a little old. i think i'm going to have to start adding to my marathon list (hint, hint) and mix it up a bit.

and so today's mileage brings me up to the big 250 mark, which means i need to think about a new pair of kicks. i'll take these into the running store and see if they recommend anything new based on how i'm wearing these in, and some of my arch/shin splint issues. i'm excited for new shoes except for the dinero...

today's mileage: 10.2
total mileage: 250.5

purchasing confidence

what better way to make yourself feel better about something like this than to buy new equipment! check it out.



the photographer in me won out over the fanny-pack-hater. more as practice for the real marathon than needing to take pictures tomorrow. i suspect tomorrow i'm just going to want to get it over and done with and staten island isn't so picturesque anyway. but! our coaches keep telling us "NOTHING NEW ON RACE DAY" so i needed to practice with the damn thing now. hopefully the goos i bought won't explode on my camera.

i've decided on oatmeal for breakfast, with a banana. we'll see how that treats me, it seems like it will be least likely to induce heartburn, but i'm going to go buy some tums just in case. my sis is coming out for pasta with me in a little bit, and then i'm going to soberly attend a good friend's b-day, then i need to get in bed early. i can't decide if i should get on the 7:30 or the 8:30 ferry, but regardless i have to be finished with breakfast by 7:30. then there's the hydration strategy, do i ride my bike down there, what flavor goo should i eat first? so much to think about.

i don't often get freaked out, it's a very rare occurrence for my normally calm and collected self. so be patient, i'll stop being a spaz eventually.

oh, ferry's run every hour on the 1/2 hour if anyone is entertaining the notion of coming over. i think i probably won't get started until 9:45 or so (being at the back) and hopefully will be about 2.5 hours...so i should arrive at the finish around 12:15. wish me luck!

exactly 3 months...

until the marathon! wow, it's crazy when I think about it like that.

in a lot of ways, i feel much more capable and experienced than when i started running a few (um, 2) months ago. in others, i still feel like a baby runner without the *right* to think that i could possibly be attempting a marathon. i try to ignore those feelings and go with the good times, but some days are harder than others.

today is kind of one of those days. i'm going to be running around getting stuff ready for the 1/2 marathon tomorrow, which i'm also petrified of. i figure if i can do it in less than 3 i'm doing okay. if not, we have some...i don't know what to do.

this is what i'm going to be doing today...
•picking up my number at new york road runners
•going to super runners world to get:
-goo
-a long sleeved dri-fit shirt (it's supposed to be cold)
-body glide (runners lube)
-a hat
-new socks
-maybe new shorts or possibly runners tights although i don't really like those
-maybe (i really don't like this one) a fanny pack*
•working on my running mix for the ipod

*i want you to know the ONLY reason i am entertaining the notion of running with a fanny pack is so I can bring my camera. what will win out...my need to take photographs or my contempt of the fanny pack. only time will tell.

ps. i'm losing my first toe nail. surely that means i'm a real runner, right!

a secret weapon for counting strides

a pedometer!

my friend kristine's contribution to marathon madness. thanks kk.