New Shoes

So it's time for me to start studying for the bar and re-learning all the things I've forgotten from the first year of law school, which means I suddenly have the urge to run random errands and update my blog. Weird.

Since the impromptu triathlon I have been running pretty regularly when the weather hasn't been literally insane, and I have been riding my bike to St. Paul every day for bar review courses. But after running the past couple weeks I've noticed that my heels have been hurting after running. I know that means I need new running shoes, but it's so hard for me to justify buying new shoes when the old ones still LOOK so nice!

After a bit of online research and emailing myself a 20% off coupon for Famous Footwear, I headed out to one of those suburban strip malls to do an afternoon of errands. Two hours later, I'm back in the car with some sweet kicks: 

I stuck with Asics, because I've had such great luck with them in the past. But this time, I made some big-boy moves and bought actual full-on, all-the-way running shoes (the Gel-Nimbus 12) priced at $189 at the Running Room. Luckily, my bargain alert was on high today, and with my coupon, plus an additional discount for Memorial Day, I scored these shoes for $99. BOOM.

I'll post a review later, because I'm about to leave for my first run around Lake Calhoun in the new shoes.

Training in the Boundary Waters

Traditional triathlon training took a hiatias over the past four days, as I was roughing it out in the Boundary Waters on a camping/portaging trip with some friends. We did some canoeing and portaging, but I had planned on a lot more swimming. Unfortunately, the cold temperature and high winds prevented any of us from jumping into the lakes willingingly!

We got back into Minneapolis around 6 pm, and on the entire 5.5 hour drive back to the city, I went back and forth about whether or not I would work out once I got home. It was a beautiful evening, and eating some sugary road trip treats along the way gave me a second wind after that long drive, so I decided to run the loop around Calhoun. I did the loop in under 30 minutes, which really raised my spirits about Sunday! Lately, I have been a little worried about the racing - fearing that I won't finish or will have to walk during the running portion.

Running around Lake Calhoun has become a bit of a safety blanket. I really enjoy the loop, because it is a perfect 5k (the exact length of the run in the tri) and it is enjoyable, especially in the evening. But I also know exactly when I am halfway around the loop, I know when I'm a quartile mile away, and I'm concerned that not knowing where the end of the race is will detract from my time on Sunday. My number one fan arrives in Minneapolis tomorrow, and I'm hoping we can drive over to St. Paul on Friday or Saturday to check out the course! I think that will relieve some anxiety and get me even more excited about the triathlon on Sunday. So close to race day!!!

Me: "I got mosquito bites last night on my bike ride." My boss: "You weren't moving fast enough."

Bike ride, schmike ride, my bicycling skillz are off the chain. Two recent bike stories for all you loyal readers:

After working 12 hours at the office on Monday, yes I said 12, I went on a long bike ride to work out some of aggression and manic feelings that had built up after sitting at my desk for so long. I did my typical ride to Hopkins, MN, home of beloved Cargill, and then looped back into the city via the Greenway. On the way home, I decided to do a bit more, and circled Lake Calhoun and Lake Harriet before heading back to my apartment. Of course, once I reached my apartment, I ran into the infamous Larry, whose car btw, is no longer abandoned on the side of the street. I'm secretly dying to ask him about the engine fire, but don't care enough to get into a 20 minute discussion on why cars from the '80s randomly implode. Whenever I see Larry after a bike ride, he usually says something really intelligent like, "Looks like you missed the rain," (it hadn't rained in the past 48 hours and there was no future rain in the forecast), or "Looks like you went on a bike ride" (umm yeah thanks, Larry), or the all time classic where he says nothing at all, attempts to hold open my apartment door to "help" me inside and then proceeds to strike up a conversation about how I should go into elder law.

Which is a perfect lead-in to my next story. On Thursday, I was on the West River Parkway trail, heading from school to Erin's house. This trail is massive. It's super wide and is always in great shape, which is why, when I pass slowpokes, I do not feel the need to shriek "on the left." Flash forward to halfway down the trail, I pass Mr. and Mrs. Old People pedaling along without a care in the world. With no one else approaching, I glided by unannounced. THEN, 10 minutes later, at a stop sign, Mr. Old Person breezes through the requisite stop (illegal btw) and yells "On the left! This what you're supposed to say when you pass someone!!!" I only wish I had been able to explain to him that the "lesson" he was trying to teach me was completely overshadowed by the fact that he almost got hit by a car during his instruction. But judging from how he swerved uglyass recumbent in the face of near death, I'm guessing he knows that already.

#1 Reason Why I Couldn't Train for a Triathlon Indoors

I am really lucky to live in such an awesome city like Minneapolis where bicycle trails are abundant. The trails are all well groomed and maintained (even in the winter months) and provide ample amounts of rides with interconnecting trails to facilitate longer rides. The only potential downside to the trails are the number of rollerbladers that hog up space on the trail and always seem to be listening to their music loud enough that they don't hear the annoying "on the left" alert from me when I try to pass them. Or maybe they're just ignoring me. I'd probably ignore me too.

As my time on the bike increases in training, I realized how much I would hate having to be on a stationary bicycle in a gym for over an hour. Talk about boring! Instead I have been on some great rides lately. My new favorite, a little longer ride of about 90 minutes, takes me around Lake Harriet (photo above), out to Hopkins, MN, and then back on the Greenway to wrap around Lake Calhoun and Lake Harriet again before heading home.

The best part is ending the ride on a beautiful evening like last night and seeing this sunset (photo below) over Lake Calhoun. Tres belle!

Sub 30 minute 5K!

Hey there readers! Guess who's favorite triathlete ran her first sub 30 minute 5K this evening? YOURS TRULY! I guess the trick to running faster is to head to Lake Calhoun, alone, around 8:30 pm just as the sun is setting, and then halfway around the lake remember that there was a shooting there just a couple weeks ago. Oh shit. Run faster. Claw the eyes out of anyone who approaches.

Don't worry Mum readers, I made it out of the war zone before it was completely dark and back into the safety of my car. It was then, when I checked my cell phone, that I noticed it was not even 9 pm. I left the car at approximately 8:30 pm and was back by 8:58 pm, which I don't know if you can keep up with the math, but that is less than 30 minutes! My miles thus far have all been around 10 minutes, so this was a really big deal for me. It means that I'm becoming faster and stronger, and I'm going to ANNIHILATE this triathlon and every contestant around me. Ok, I'm getting a little carried away. But really, I am hoping to at least smoke one person, even if that person is 60 years older than me. 70 days until race day!

The End of Week Two

So today's 40 minute run wrapped up week two of the twelve week training program, and to honest, I was pretty frustrated with my run today. I have felt really comfortable so far progressing with bicycling and swimming, but running continues to be a HUGE hurdle for me, and the hurdle gets bigger as each workout time increases.

I asked Rachael to go running with me today, and I was thrilled when she said yes, because I knew the run would go faster with a friend. Thank god she was there, otherwise I would have stopped a quartile mile in and withered in embarrassment as all the super fit bodies passed me on the running path around Lake Calhoun. I pushed through the workout, and we ended the run stretching in the shade. Stretching is another reason I was grateful for Rachael's company. It feels totally awkward to stretch by myself, vogue-ing it out in front of the rest of the seen-and-be-seen crowd at Calhoun.

Week three begins tomorrow with another 25 minutes in the pool, but that might be prolonged until Friday seeing as how I'm going to Canterbury to bet on horses and drink $3 beers tomorrow after work! And I wonder why I am still having problems running...c'est la vie.



Cheers!

Back in the Pool

I drove directly from work to the gym last night to get some laps in before meeting friends at the fabulous Tin Fish for dinner on Lake Calhoun. Normally I swim much later in the evening, and for some odd reason, the compulsive planner in me did not check the lap pool schedule for the earlier times in the day.

I had just finished the work out portion of swimming and had started on my cool down laps, when something happened...swim practice. These little brats took up every lane, and I was forced to dogg it out in the open water portion of the pool. Luckily I only had 200 meters left, so it really wasn't that bad.

Swimming has by far been my favorite portion of training, and I think the biggest reason for that is because I don't sweat. Well, to clarify, I do sweat. It is a cardio workout, people. But I'm not sweaty because I'm underwater. Very unlike the experiences I have running or biking where when I begin to sweat, I quickly start to hate the fact that I have clothes on, or skin, or the world in general. Like today on my bike ride to work. My head was so warm, and I only can push the helmet back so far off my brow until I start to feel guilty and slam it back into place! AND speaking of, I FINALLY remembered to bring my camera, so I'll post a couple pictures of the Greenway tonight.

Day 2: Not so great of a run

Today's training regiment called for 30 minutes of running. Piece of cake, I thought to myself. A quick run around Lake Calhoun, and I'll call it a day. Yeah, right.

It was hot. It was humid. A bug got in my eye. My crappy shorts that I've had since high school kept riding up. And I kept getting stomach craps, which I know are a direct result of not drinking enough water today, for which I can only blame myself. Augh. Not enjoyable. I thought I would be over these sorts of things by now, but today was just proof that I still have a long way to go before August 22nd. I stopped to walk 3 times, but then forced myself to run the hills on my way home, so I think it evened out.

But you know what, readers? This will NOT get me down. First of all, today was also the first day of my summer job, and I had an absolutely wonderful day and am so happy to be working there this summer. Second of all, I had an even better hair day! And yes, having a great hair day really is THAT big of a deal for me. So bring on the challenges triathlon gods! I am owning this summer.

"For someone who hates running, you sure run a lot."

The title of this post pretty much sums up my run last night. I ran around Lake Calhoun with Jihone and really hated the experience. I don't know if I was tired from running a little longer the day before or what, but around the halfway point, every part of me was thinking "screw this."

This is where it was really helpful to be running with a friend. It forced me to continue running for two reasons:
1. I didn't want to ruin his workout by making us stop
2. I didn't want to look like a fat baby who couldn't finish something she easily did yesterday

So yes, I finished the run, yelled "thank god" and went home to eat some peanut m&ms.

Today is an off day. No, this has nothing to do with a training regiment, which I still have to create btw. It's simply because I don't have enough time in the day. Between work, networking, and oh yeah, the PARTY BUS I'm going on tonight for a friend's birthday, working out isn't making the schedule today.

Check back tomorrow when I attempt to run and then attend a 90 minute hot yoga session at Core Power. Hopefully some of the hippies decide to wear deodorant this time.

Question of the Day

Hello, readers! Here is my question: do your hands ever swell when you are running? If so, what do you do to prevent or alleviate this?

I had this problem today when I was running around Lake Calhoun. It doesn't happen to me every time I run, but frequently enough that it is annoying. This has also happened to me when I have been hiking, but I cured the problem by using hiking poles, and I think the constant motion of my arms makes the blood flow better. What should I do when running? Move my arms more? Higher? Lower?

My run was pretty uneventful other than that it was the first time I have run with my new ipod. It worked marvelously, and I'm really happy with my purchase! I was feeling pretty good (and listening to Lets Get Loud!) at the beginning of my run, so I increased my speed. Suddenly, augh! stomach cramp, and I had to slow down to a jog. Maybe I'll be able to run a little faster tomorrow.

One more thought: can training for a triathlon give me a body like J-Lo?

NEWS FLASH

I just ran for a second time today! Yes, that is correct - two workouts in one day. Has the whole world gone crazy? Did I ingest crazy pills along with my marshmellow peeps this morning? Who knows! But the idea of running around Lake Calhoun with my friend, Jihone, and enjoying the last few minutes of sunshine in the day made me realize I. Had. Not. Had. Enough.

This means I ran about 6 miles today. I'm not sure if I could have done it consecutively, but I am going to start pushing myself for more speed now that I know I have built up more endurance.

First Timed Run

I ran another lap (5k) around Lake Calhoun tonight, and for the first time I actually paid attention to my starting and stopping time. I made it around again without walking, although I must confess, it was harder to do on my own and with the 25 mph wind gusts. My time per mile was what I expected: 10 minutes. I'm not sure how to decrease that time, other than running faster. My hope is that the more I run, the better my time will become. I will have to read some books about this.

I don't think I have explicitly stated my goals on here for my first triathlon, but they are as follows:
1. finish the race
2. don't be last

Although I am far from swimming, biking, and running a complete course, I looked up last year's race times to get a general idea of where I need to be in 142 days. The top woman finished in 1:08 and the last place woman finished in 2:51. I would love to finish right around the 1:30 mark, but unless I buy a new bicycle, I don't think that's happening. Some time under 2:00 is realistic. More about getting psyched out about expensive triathlon gear that "makes you faster" later.

And on a final note, I haven't exercised this much in a week since high school - and that was because we had gym class daily....

Peer Pressure Made Me Do It

Last night I reached another goal: running around Lake Calhoun (5k) without stopping! I have no idea of my time per mile, but I kept a constant pace and finished strong. But I didn't do it alone! I can attribute much of this success to my friend, Rachael. We ran around the lake together, and running with her forced me to keep a steady pace and to continue going when I really felt like stopping. If I had been alone, I likely would have stopped to walk at least once. Thanks, friend! For the first time I see the benefits of having a running buddy, and I hope that we can go running together often.

Today's lesson: peer pressure can be a good thing!

In other news, I saw the homeless clown on Nicollet Mall again yesterday, but he wasn't assaulting anyone this time. Keep on the path of straight and narrow clownman.

Cemetaries, Lakes, and Clowns

The perils of moving apartments include learning the buses that stop near your new apartment. In my haste to get home last night after eating free Punch Pizza, I boarded the wrong bus and wound up by the ghetto Kmart near midtown. Umm what. The letters after the numbers on the bus line actually mean something? Next time a friend offers me a ride, I'll swallow any guilt I have towards wasting their time and accept the offer. Fast forward an hour later, after taking another bus and walking over a mile, I finally arrive at my doorstep. The entire walk home, I had been attempting to convince myself that my walk constituted exercise, which meant I wouldn't have to go running later. Well, guess what, evil part of my brain, NOT THIS TIME. I put on my running shorts and headed out the door.

The next challenge involved in living in a new place: not knowing a running route. I'm attempting to stick to my guns and not pay for internet, so without the aid of Google maps, I decided to run in the general direction towards Lake Calhoun and run for about 30 minutes.

The good news: I ran for 30 solid minutes and felt really good about it when I got home.

The bad news: I ran past a cemetery and saw way too many freshly dug graves. creepy!

Oh, yeah, and the bonus that I got for taking the wrong bus: I saw one homeless man dressed as a clown, slap another homeless man in a wheelchair across the face on Nicollet Mall.