Why I run

I am frequently asked why I run. Nonrunners are always curious why us runners put ourselves through that kind of "self-inflicted torture" (those were the exact words that someone once used when asking me!)

Well jeez, when you put it that way, it does sound pretty crazy, doesn't it?

I will certainly agree that running can be hard, frustrating, and painful. I definitely have my days, weeks, and even months where I wonder why I put myself through the effort. Sometimes the couch looks oh-so-inviting!

In the end, though, running has always been worth it. SO worth it.

I run because:

I love the euphoric feeling I get from a good run. Sometimes it feels good right away, sometimes it takes a few miles, sometimes the euphoria doesn't come until after I've finished (sometimes hours later). But running always makes me feel good.

I love the mental strength and clarity that running gives me. It has taught me how to keep persevering and pushing even when every fiber of my being is screaming at me to slow down or stop. I've learned so many times that my body is capable of much more than what I think. To me, this is a metaphor for life. It has translated into increased confidence across so many other facets of my life.

I love experiencing improvement. In the last three years, I have improved my half marathon time by more than 20 minutes. An 8-minute mile pace no longer feels like panicked sprinting to me. The 10-mile distance used to feel like an enormous effort, but now it's my favorite race distance! In my humble opinion, there is truly no better feeling than seeing your training efforts pay off.

Running is so versatile. It can be done solo, with pets, or with 50,000+ of your closest friends. It requires comparatively minimal equipment. Getting started requires almost no preparation or training. You can run at any time of day or night, for any length of time, at any speed, both indoors and out, in any season, and in nearly any weather conditions. It can be done almost anywhere in the world. What other sport or activity can boast that kind of flexibility?

I love the cameraderie. I've made the most incredible friends through a shared love of running. It provides an amazing, transcendent bond across otherwise perfect strangers. Runners are some of the most welcoming people I've ever met. It's not a coincidence that the runner that breaks the tape receives the same finisher's medal as the runner who finishes last.

OK! Before I close for the day, let's make sure we covered everything.

Have I have shown an artistic running picture? Check.

Have I been philosophical? Check. 

Have I included an image of a glorious sunset with a runner's gallant silhouette? Check, check, check.

And now. It is time to share one final, brutally honest answer on why I run:

I love the shoes!!!!!!!! =D

Linking up with April, Patty, and Erika for Tuesdays on the Run.

CARA Live Grit Lakefront 10-Miler race recap

This past Saturday, I completed my third running of the CARA Lakefront 10-Miler (newly sponsored by Live Grit this year). This is one of my favorite classic Chicago races. It is very affordable while offering great organization, beautiful course scenery, nice swag, and a field of serious runners. Additionally, I love mid-sized races and this race had just over 1,100 finishers. Perfect!

The race-time weather forecast was calling for clear skies with temps in the mid- to upper 50s and rising. I had originally been planning to wear capris and a long-sleeved shirt, but decided at the last minute to switch to a short-sleeve shirt. Even with this change, I was fearing that I was overdressed. It's such a frequent challenge.

Erin and I hopped into my car and trekked up to Montrose Harbor. We arrived on site and met up with these fabulous ladies for a pre-race photo:

From L to R: Erin, Marcia, Sara, Wendy, Zenaida, and me

It was terrific to see everyone! It was especially great to meet Sara and Wendy in person for the first time - they are both such awesome women!

Zenaida and I were planning to run together as long as we could. My hope to was finish sub 1:40, as my 10-mile PR was 1:41:15. I mentioned to Zenaida that I wanted to try to run at a 10-minute pace for the first five miles, and then try to speed up in the second half.

Off to the starting line. After a recorded rendition of the national anthem that most of us couldn't hear, the runners took off.

My Garmin was indicating a 9:45 pace during most of the first mile. Since I do tend to start out too quickly, I tried to slow down a little. Zenaida and I ended up crossing the Mile 1 marker in 10:25. I was dismayed at the apparent inaccuracy of my Garmin, while also thinking that I might have already undermined my time goal. I told Zenaida that I wanted to speed up. She told me to go on ahead.

In the name of maintaining relatively even splits, I wanted to make up for the lost time on a gradual basis. Surprisingly, I hit the Mile 2 marker in about 9:35. This made me think that I had overcorrected and that yet again I was starting out too fast. Isn't it funny how quickly the mentality can change?

I decided to stop paying so much "real-time" attention to my Garmin and to run by feel instead.

The course went over the infamous Cricket Hill around Mile 3. By Chicago standards, this hill is a big deal. I'm also the biggest flatlander you'll ever find in the running hemisphere. However, the horrors of Calvert Hill in DC must have altered my perspective because for once, the hill didn't faze me. I charged right on up.

Zenaida took this great picture of Cricket Hill.
Doesn't it look so lush and green despite the terror it instills in Chicago runners?

The soft, grassy surface was actually much more bothersome to me - I felt like I was running in quicksand! I was happy to get back onto the pavement afterwards.

I was trying to high-five as many of the spectators and volunteers as I could. I took a GU at around Mile 4.5 and enjoyed the little caffeine boost that I got shortly thereafter. I was still feeling really good and my splits were all in the 9:40s and 9:50s. How long could I keep this up?!?

The course went south on the lakefront path to Fullerton Avenue around Mile 6, then turned around and headed back north. As soon as I made the turnaround, I was hit by a veritable wall of wind. Holy cow! Where did that come from?

My hope was to run a negative split, but the wind was relentless. As I pushed through, my hands and arms got progressively colder and stiffer. My left hip flexor and piriformis were both aching, too. Not surprisingly, my splits for the next two miles rose to just over 10 minutes apiece. I was glad that I had some extra time banked up.

I hit Mile 9 at 1:28:20. I told myself that it would be great to finish with something starting with a 1:37. Doing some quick math in my head, this meant running the final mile in less than 9:40. Yes, I can do this!

A few minutes later, my Garmin was reading around 9.5 miles but course marshals were telling us, "Just a quarter-mile to go!" Really? Either they didn't have their facts straight or my Garmin was off. Both were possibilities, LOL. In this case, my Garmin ended up being pretty accurate.

Then, my favorite part of the race - seeing the finish line! I gleefully sprinted the final tenth of a mile. What a thrill it was to see a 1:37:XX on my Garmin after crossing!

My official finishing time was 1:37:43. This is a 3:32 improvement over my prior PR. WOO HOO!!!

After grabbing some post-race food, I met back up with Erin, Zenaida, Marcia, Sara, and Wendy. It was awesome to hang out and chat with everyone. Huge congrats and high fives to Erin, Wendy, and Sara, who also PR'd!!!

Here is our post-race photo:

Notice that almost all of us were wearing jackets here. The temperature felt like it had dropped about 20 degrees compared to the start! At that point, I was really glad to have the clothing that I did. Gotta love how temperamental Chicago weather is, eh?

Here's the finisher's medal:

Love it!

What an amazing day! Great friends, great race!

The new PR was a huge momentum booster for me. There is no better feeling than seeing visible results from all of the training efforts. Suddenly I am super motivated to continue working hard so I can keep improving. Bring it on!!!

My next race: The Race to Wrigley 10K on Saturday, April 25.

Wannabe spokesperson

Happy Friday, everyone!

I'm linking up with Cynthia, Courtney, and Mar for the Friday Five.

This week's subject prompt: "5 brands to love."

There are SO MANY brands that I love that it is impossible for me to select just five. Instead, I'm going to take a slightly different spin on this topic. I'll share five product categories in general that I would happily endorse, if given the opportunity.

1. Running gear
Being the runner that I am, this one is a no-brainer. I could easily write several separate posts on all the different running products that I love. When considering overall selections of shoes and apparel, ASICS has probably been the most consistent for me. However, certain other brands have really stood out to me for specific items. E.g., I have a Sugoi jacket that I absolutely love; sports bras from Victoria's Secret that are very flattering; and Balega socks that are so cushy that they make me feel like I'm walking in melted chocolate. We won't even get into fueling, hydration, PT, or recovery products.

2. Dairy products
Cheese, glorious cheese. Cheese makes everything better. I also love ice cream, yogurt, custard, gelato, whipped cream, sour cream, etc., etc., etc. If butter wasn't so unhealthy, I would eat a lot more of it.

3. Scarves
The most versatile accessory known to womankind. They can be worn in any season; in any infinite number of ways; come in a dazzling array of colors, patterns, and styles; and are truly one-size-fits-all.

4. Slow cookers
Cooking doesn't get much easier or faster than with the slow cooker. Just dump in all the ingredients, stir it up, and set the timer. It's a life-saving tool when the schedule is a complete disaster. Not to mention how great it feels to get home after a long day and be greeted with the aroma of a ready-to-eat slow cooker meal.

5. Five honorable mentions (since I had trouble picking a single item to list as fifth)
Toastmasters
The Divvy bike sharing system
The Shazam app for identifying music
Barre classes
My library card

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Your turn! If you could endorse any products or brands of your choice, what would you pick?

Ad hoc-ing

Top of the mornin' to y'all! I was up late last night watching the Blackhawks' come-from-behind, double-overtime victory over the Predators. I won't kid you, I was a little delirious afterwards. Clearly I need to rebuild my hockey fan endurance for watching these 4- or 5-hour playoff games. =D

That being said, the timing couldn't be more perfect for me pump out some rambles and link up with Amanda's Thinking Out Loud Thursdays!

Word Puzzles
On Tuesday night, Adam and I were looking through his high school senior yearbook (he went to Mount Lebanon High School in Pittsburgh).

Check out his yearbook's cover design:

The theme is MTV, with a clever conversion to MTL - which stands for Mt. Lebanon. So ingenious!

Adam and I were flipping through the pages, admiring all the mullets and mall-chick hair. There were a lot of music quotes strewn amidst the pictures, to which Adam commented, "I wonder who gets to pick those out every year?" I mentioned that I thought the altered MTV logo was a neat take-off on the Mt. Lebanon letters.

He looked at me quizzically and said, "Is it?"

I said, "Yeah!" and reiterated the symbolism.

Adam looked very surprised. He said, "You know, in all of the years I've had this yearbook, this is the first time I have ever noticed that."

WHAT?!?!? I thought he was joking. He wasn't.

To put this into context, this yearbook was published 24 years ago. So it has taken Adam 24 years to understand the meaning behind his yearbook's logo and theme.

It's a good thing I'm here to help decipher!!! =D

Spirited
I finally watched Spirit of the Marathon this past weekend. WOW. What an amazing documentary with so many contrasts. As expected, it was very emotional for me to see the personal stories and journeys unfold. The features and scenes on Kenya were very eye-opening, too.

On a side note, it was interesting to see how much has changed since the movie was filmed in 2005. Back then, the marathoners had to return their timing chips after crossing the finish line. There wasn't any security at the starting corrals. Nobody wore compression socks or any fancy gear that I could see. Everyone wore white running shoes.

It's too bad the film didn't get into specifics regarding the training plans. It would have been cool to see how endurance training philosophies have evolved over the past decade. (Does anyone have any thoughts on that?)

Shoegate
Speaking of changing running shoes, remember when I mentioned the new shoes I was considering?!?

Say hello to the two newest additions to my running shoe collection!

L: the Saucony Ride 7
R: the Mizuno Wave Rider 18

I wasn't originally planning on buying two new pairs at the same time. Really, I wasn't. But Amazon had an amazing one-day sale on the Mizunos, and Running Warehouse was running a great promotion on the Sauconys. I couldn't resist.

Can't wait to start working the newbies into the rotation!

Ooopsie
Speaking of that Running Warehouse promotion - it is supposed to be good for a $20 discount off of a future Saucony purchase of $50 or more. However, in reading the gift card's fine print, it looks like somebody goofed! Check it out:

I wonder what Running Warehouse would do if I actually wanted to apply my Saucony gift card to a Mizuno purchase? Technically, they would have to honor it, right?!?

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Allright, I think that's enough nonsense for now. Happy Thursday to all! Tell me what plans you have for the upcoming weekend!?!?

NHL Round 1 playoff predictions

Allright hockey fans - the playoffs start tonight. Let's play Spin the Brackets!

Before we begin, let me be very clear. I am NOT a hockey expert by ANY stretch of the imagination. But it is fun to moonlight as one! So today I present to thee, my darndest attempt at impersonating a hockey sportsblogger.

EASTERN CONFERENCE

#1 New York Rangers vs #4 Pittsburgh Penguins

OK, I am not unbiased here since the Penguins are my second-favorite team. But I'll be brutally honest.

It was distressing to observe how out-of-sync the Penguins looked during the final stretch of the regular season. They have been completely decimated by injury. The recent loss of defenseman Kris Letang has been what I consider the final blow. This forced them to play with only five d-men for long stretches of time due to salary cap constraints. Terrible situation.

This is in stark contrast to the surging Rangers, who are even more dangerous now that star goalie Henrik Lundqvist is back in the line-up. Truthfully, I fear the Penguins are going to get swept. But I'll be a little optimistic that Pittsburgh will finally be able to get some help from their farm team d-men in the playoffs. Plus, I think Pens star goalie Marc-Andre Fleury will probably steal a game or two.

Prediction: Rangers in five (although I hope it will go to at least six)

#2 Washington Capitals vs #3 New York Islanders

Interesting match-up! The Islanders have been on the downswing towards the end of the regular season. Additionally, the Capitals have a strong power play while the Islanders struggle on the penalty kill. I also don't have a lot of confidence in Islanders goalie Jaroslav Halak (though admittedly I think Caps goalie Braden Holtby is untested, too).

Prediction: Capitals in six

#1 Montreal Canadiens vs #4 Ottawa Senators

Holy Batman, Ottawa Senators! Way for the Sens to be the fairytale of the regular season, coming out of complete obscurity to make the playoffs with gusto. I think Ottawa will give the Canadiens a serious run for their money. This series has upset potential. Ultimately I don't think the Sens will be able to keep up their torrid pace down the stretch, though. Regardless of what happens, you know that Hockey Night in Canada will be ALL OVER this match-up.

Prediction: Habs in seven

#2 Tampa Bay Lightning vs #3 Detroit Red Wings

I am used to the Red Wings always being favored for their extensive playoff experience. However, these days it seems like they are on the decline. They've got a goalie controversy and from what I understand, their experience has now morphed into a lack of youth. Tampa led the NHL in goals scored during the regular season and from what I hear, they are less injury-ridden than the Wings.

Prediction: Lightning in six

COMMERCIAL BREAK

Any time I'm at the United Center, I giggle each time I see Jonathan Toews sharing his game-watching etiquette tips:

Way to tell 'em, Tazer!

Remember his words, folks: THINK. And then go.

[End commercial break/public service announcement]

I wonder if there were any outtakes from that video???

Anyways... moving on!

WESTERN CONFERENCE

#1 St. Louis Blues vs #4 Minnesota Wild

Great match-up! The Wild are another Cinderella story this season. I will be the first to admit that I thought Wild coach Mike Yeo should have been fired early on. I am amazed that goalie Devan Dubnyk has made that much of a difference in their turnaround. I don't think the Wild can keep up their torrid pace forever, but I do think they have more momentum going into the playoffs than the Blues. Both teams have untested goalies so it'll be interesting to see who breaks first. Either way, as a Blackhawks fan, it'll be exciting to watch these teams maul each other.

Prediction: Wild in seven

#2 Nashville Predators vs #3 Chicago Blackhawks

Disclaimer: I am biased. So incredibly, ridiculously, obscenely biased.

I think that Nashville outperformed themselves during the first half of the regular season. Their biggest strength is goalie Pekka Rinne. Beyond that, I don't think they are standouts in any other category. It also makes me raise my eyebrows to hear about some of the Predators' antics to keep visiting Hawks fans at bay (Example 1 and Example 2). I think Nashville is shooting themselves in the foot.

I am surprised and thrilled that Hawks superstar Patrick Kane will be returning from his lengthy injury for this series! Even without him, I would have favored the Hawks with their potent offense, stingy defense, strong special teams, and goalie depth. But now, this is a total no-brainer for me.

Prediction: Hawks in six (although, Kaner's return is tempting me to say five)

#1 Anaheim Ducks vs #4 Winnipeg Jets

Ducks coach Bruce Boudreau's teams have a history of amazing regular seasons, followed by flame-outs when the playoffs begin. As such, I always consider his teams to be potential upsets. They do have much more playoff experience than the Jets, though. I thought Winnipeg was going to stumble out of playoff contention at the last minute. I think even they are surprised to be there. It'll be fun to watch the Jets run and gun their way in this series as the underdog. In this case, though, I think that Anaheim will be able to pull it off. 

Prediction: Ducks in six

#2 Vancouver Canucks vs #3 Calgary Flames

Hockey Night in Canada will be all over this match-up, too. Vancouver has a lot more playoff experience, but in general I don't think they are as potent in any category as they once were. They also have a goalie controversy. On the other hand, I think Calgary is another team that is surprised to find themselves in the playoffs. I think the Flames will play more like they have nothing to lose. In the end, though, I think that Vancouver has a more balanced attack.

Prediction: Canucks in six

As always, feel free to comment or email me if you want to let me know how wrong you think I am on any of these predictions.

To conclude today: In honor of Patrick Kane's return, and since no hockey post of mine is ever complete without a great Blackhawks photo, I present to you one of my favorite goal celebrations by #88 himself!

This puts all my race photo body spasms to shame, eh?

Spring 2015 Half Marathon training plan

Originally, my spring race calendar consisted entirely of events that I had registered for purely in the name of fun. Then, I unexpectedly won an entry to the Sunburst Race Series from Melanie's giveaway (thanks again, Melanie)! So what the heck - let's make the Sunburst Half a target race.

The June 6 race date, when I first heard about it, felt very far away. In reality, it's only 8 weeks from now. (Where has the year been going!?!?) Cue the mad scramble to put together some semblance of a training plan!

It was more challenging than anticipated to design a plan. This is for two reasons in particular:

1. Race Loading
I've got three races coming up during the next month:

1. The CARA Live Grit 10-Miler this Saturday, April 18.
2. The Race to Wrigley 10K next Saturday, April 25
3. The Cinco de Miler on Saturday, May 9. 

The CARA 10-miler works well in my training schedule. However, the other two races make it tougher to do a long run those weekends.

I have heard of some folks in this situation adding extra miles either before or after their races. That doesn't sound very appealing to me, though. Therefore, I am planning my long runs on non-race weekends.

2. Travel bug
Next month, I'll be in Korea visiting Helen. On top of the sheer amount of time that I'll be on an airplane, I'm not sure how easy it will be to go running while I am there. Even if it is easy, I don't want to use up an entire morning on a long run when I could be hanging out with Helen.

With both of these factors in mind, here is what I came up with:

Legend:

• The yoga sculpt, Zumba, and yoga are all classes that I take at my company's fitness center. 
• The Friday strength is some weight-lifting that I do at home.
• The 30-minutes speedwork refers to my go-to speed training workout. This includes a 10-minute warm-up, then alternating 1 minute at 5K race pace or faster with 1 minute of recovery. I do 10 repeats, then cool down.
• The Pure Barre class this Sunday is me taking advantage of a weekend promotion for a free class.
• U-pick can mean rest, cross-training, yoga, strength, or a few recovery miles.

Despite the thought process, this training plan is not the boss. I always give myself flexibility to change things up as needed for whatever reason. After all, I do this first and foremost to have fun!

What about you, what target races do you have on your radar screen right now? How is your training going so far this spring?

Linking up with April, Patty, and Erika for Tuesdays on the Run - the spring training edition!

Book review: 4:09:43 Boston 2013 Through the Eyes of the Runners

Wendy hosts a virtual running book club on her blog. What a great idea! I am participating this month for the first time.

This month's virtual book club selection was: 4:09:43 Boston 2013 Through the Eyes of the Runners by Hal Higdon.

I am a big fan of Hal Higdon. I consider him to be one of the most trusted training resources in the running community. I've read his website and all of his running advice in very thorough detail. I also own a copy of his Marathon: The Ultimate Training Guide novel.

Like many other runners, the Boston Marathon bombing in 2013 stung me at a very personal level. I wrote this post sharing my reaction. It's hard to believe that we are approaching the 2-year anniversary of that horrible tragedy.

Admittedly, I was a little apprehensive about reading 4:09:43. I knew that it was going to take me on an emotional journey. I was bracing myself for what I knew would be some tough details to swallow.

And so we begin.

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The book begins with introductions that include some brief history behind the Boston Marathon, background on how it operates today, and how the book came to be.

Then, the stories. One of the things I enjoy reading most on runners' blogs are the race recaps. This book was essentially a giant collection of recaps. They came from a bevvy of compelling perspectives - the elites, the race directors, the locals, the visitors from overseas.

All of the details and the perspectives were vivid and very relateable for me. Within just a few pages I was in tears. Despite wildly divergent backgrounds and lives, we are all runners and we all understand each other.

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I read about the morning routines, the nerves, the buses to the start line in Hopkinton, the hopes and fears going into that day's main event. How Boston is the dream that binds us all together. How waiting at the start line is the worst part. How it is always so challenging not to go out too fast in the beginning. How mentally and physically grueling it feels when the pain starts to hit, whether early in the course or near the end.

Having never run Boston myself (and knowing that I will probably never qualify), I was fascinated to learn more about the course. For example, I learned about the challenging downhill start, the diverse neighborhoods along the way, the drop in temperature during the final few miles from being near the ocean. I also learned more about the incredible amount of planning that goes into these races. The race director, Dave McGillivray, has run the race every year since 1973. Since he began working with the race in 1988, he runs the course afterwards by himself.

And then, the tragedy. The book was named for the fact that the clock read 4:09:43 at the time that the first bomb hit.

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It was eye-opening to read the reactions and accounts from when the bombing occurred. Some runners thought it was a cannon, celebratory fireworks, or thunder. Some were too tired to react. One ran "like Usain Bolt" even after having just completed 26.2 miles. Another said, "Living outside New York, I know that when a police tells you to turn around and run, you don't question it." One woman realized that the minute she had paused to hug her daughter on the course was the reason she wasn't in the line of fire.

I was struck by the recounts of selflessness and kindness after the bomb hit. Finishers gave away their medals to those who couldn't finish. Locals took in dozens of runners into their homes to get them off the streets. Folks offered each other their phones, chargers, and even their hotel rooms since the streets were on lockdown.

Finally, the aftermath and the lasting impact of the day's events. The runners and all those impacted by the bombings displayed unbelievable resilience and strength, while also admitting many conflicting emotions. I was particularly touched by one woman that discovered after the marathon that she was pregnant. She decided her child's middle name would be Boston.

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The book is filled with contrasts. It describes running as both solitary and communal. It shows the sheer panic alongside the determined strength. The stories are both heartbreaking and inspirational.

I recommend this book for all runners and for anyone impacted by the day's events. The book isn't just about the Boston Marathon bombings; it is a book about the human spirit.

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