Today brings another edition of random thoughts - this time generated from a perfect storm of schedule craziness.
Go Blackhawks!
I've gone to two Blackhawks games in the past week with my friend Katie. I won tickets to the first from a Blackhawks/Goodwill sweepstakes, and my friend Jenny gave me her tickets to the second which she couldn't use (thanks again, Jenny!)
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| Katie and I at the Hawks vs Wild game last night. Katie is sporting a brand new Hawks throwback jersey that she bought just minutes before the puck dropped! |
"Hello, my name is Emily and I'm addicted to watching live Blackhawks games."
In the meantime, I am so excited that the Hawks are going to the playoffs again this year for the fourth consecutive year. Bring it on!!!
MAASU Spring Conference at UIUC
The 2012 MAASU Spring Conference took place this past weekend at my dear alma mater. It made for some crazy traveling and juggling, but it was a great time.
The planning committee invited some prominent UIUC alums to speak/perform at the Friday night variety show and Saturday night banquet, and I am always amazed at the level of talent they bring. As usual, I thoroughly enjoyed all the students' energy and enthusiasm - I always try to bring some of that back with me to apply to my daily functions!
I have a workshop on Self Branding that I've presented at the MAASU conferences many times over the years, including this past weekend. Here's a picture that one of my participants (who also performed at the Friday night variety show and was AWESOME) took of the workshop in action:
(There were a plethora of other great photos from the weekend that I would love to share, but at the moment I am still waiting for the sources to put them up on Facebook! Hopefully more pictures will come soon.)
Every time I go to the UIUC campus, I see more and more improvements that have been made since I was a student there. The students really do have every imaginable resource right at their fingertips or at their doorsteps. It makes me very nostalgic for my college days.
On a runners note, I saw various signs posted around campus for the Illinois Marathon, which takes place in Urbana-Champaign at the end of April. There is a program of some sort where for $25 students can join a training group, I believe. What an unbelievable deal! If I was still a student, I'd be signed up in a heartbeat!
Blackberry Life Support
I have had a Blackberry for at least the last 3 years, and its battery has been undergoing a slow and painful death for at least the last 6 months. I also think I am one of the very few remaining blokes (blokettes?) out there that still has a Blackberry and not an iPhone or similar.
Random Training Notes
- I said before that I didn't really feel much difference between any of my various pairs of running shoes, but I'm starting to think that the Brooks Glycerin 8 shoes may not be my favorite. I feel like they don't absorb the shock of impact as well as some of the others. I'm considering getting a pair of Superfeet insoles for them to see if it helps, but if not these shoes might be relegated only for shorter weekday runs.
- Between now and when official marathon training starts, I'm thinking that I'll do a long run of 10 or 11 miles every other weekend. The intent is to maintain my current distance threshhold without pushing too hard, hopefully reducing the risk of injury in these next few months. I would still like to do some speed training every week, but I plan to specifically focus on speed training during those off weeks.
- I ran 10 miles yesterday morning and was not very motivated at the start. Despite my goal to wean myself of listening to music I had my headphones going the whole time.
- My next race is the CARA Lakefront 10-miler on April 28. I'm feeling pretty good with my current level of conditioning to the point where 10 miles seems fairly easy. Therefore, I don't really plan to train specifically for this race. Although, I'll have some family in town that weekend who plan to come watch me cross the finish line (thanks in advance for the support!). Therefore, it would be nice to not finish in last place.
Yay for doing the Lakefront 10! And 10 being easy. I have never done that race but have heard good things about it :)
ReplyDeleteI think your idea to keep up your endurance until the marathon is a good one. Most plans seem to start with an 8 mile long run so you should be okay! :)
That conference sounds really cool!
Thanks, Kim! I hear good things in general about the CARA races. The big test will be the CARA 20-Miler later this year, have you ever done that one?
DeleteThanks for the support on my current training plan! By the way, I am still debating back and forth on hiring a running coach, so your thoughts on having one were really helpful!
As far as phones go...I'm a big fan of my HTC Thunderbolt. My only complaint is it's a little bit large, but overall, quite happy with it. I've never had any apple products though, so I can't compare to an Iphone.
ReplyDeleteMolly, thanks for your thoughts! I've actually never heard of HTC until now. This is good feedback for when I start going phone shopping and get overwhelmed by the number of choices out there!
DeleteMy droid is also languishing in a slow and painful death. And I completely agree - phone shopping = OVERWHELMING.
ReplyDeleteGO HAWKS!!!!!!!
For me, what makes phone shopping so crazy is the thousands of features and considerations to balance against each other. I actually don't really need all the bells and whistles and the ability to cook dinner by using my phone, LOL. Too bad they don't make "basic" smartphones. Let me know if/when you decide to go phone shopping, too!
DeleteGO HAWKS!!!!!! =D
I have yet to run a 10 mile race, but I'm itching to do it soon. I'm jealous that you'll be running one!
ReplyDeleteGood luck on the phone front! Big purchases like that always stress me out. I have an iphone, and I like it pretty well, but I don't have much in the way of needs. I don't need to use it for work or to answer e-mails. I just check my blog stats (Ha!), take pictures, and get on facebook. I'm guessing just about any phone out there can do that.*
This will actually be my inaugural 10-mile race, too! I've only run 5Ks, 10Ks, and half marathons so far in my running career. And - I am jealous that you'll be running your full marathon in just a few short weeks!!! =)
DeleteSpoiler alert - I actually did get an iPhone yesterday! My firm only supports Blackberries and iPhones, so that made the decision easy. Soon I'm going to be looking up your post from a few weeks ago about those cool apps you have on your phone, too!!!