Showing posts with label running. Show all posts
Showing posts with label running. Show all posts

Friday, July 2, 2010

New Running Blog

A few days ago I was trying to find consumer reports on the Garmin Forerunner and I came across the DC Rainmaker. CHECK HIM OUT! And he does GIVEAWAYS!

Friday, June 18, 2010

Breakfast fit for an Ultrarunner

I decided to try a quasi-recipe that I read about in "Born to Run." For breakfast the day of the big ultra-marathon (100 miles in scorching heat and over deadly terrain) this Mexican woman made all the runners a special kind of pancake. It included corn meal, goat's milk, overripe bananas, and boiled rice mixed into the batter. I used Trader Joe's whole grain pancake mix, three overripe bananas, boiled rice, half and half (this was last minute so I had to make due with what I had) and skipped the corn meal all together.



They were delicious - but filling!

B+ 5K


Yesterday I ran the Andrew McDonough B+ Foundation for Pediatric Cancer Research's 5K race on SavannahStrong's team. SavannahStrong is an phrase created when Savannah Pauley was diagnosed with bone cancer in August 2008. Savannah passed away last September, but her memory and spirit live on through SavannahStrong. Jill and her family were the ones who introduced me to the group. I did some research and found out that while this little 10 year-old had cancer, she also raised over $6,500 for the Andrew McDonough B+ Foundation and raised $1,000 by asking for donations in lieu of gifts for her 10th birthday. She was quite an impressive little girl.

The race brought in over 2,300 runners and $110,000 for the B+ Foundation! It was perfect weather (sunny but not too hot) and a pretty decent course with a killer hill at about 2.5 miles. I clocked in at 22:36. I haven't run a race since college, and after having so much fun yesterday, I am ready to sign up for many more.


Monday, May 3, 2010

The Love of Running


Lately I've been reading "Born to Run, A Hidden Tribe, Superathletes, and the Greatest Race the World Has Never Seen" by Christopher McDougall. It was given to me as a Christmas present, and I started it soon after the new year but have just recently gotten serious about reading it (mainly due to all the plane trips I've been taking lately). I am so sorry that I didn't get into it earlier. The usual take-away from this book seems to be that we should return to the way humans used to run, the way we were built to run, with little or no footwear. I however, am being incredibly inspired by the description of the pure love of running. As I'm waiting for my running partner to get here, I'll jot a few of my favorite excerpts:

That's the real secret of the Tarahumara: they'd never forgotten what it felt like to love running. They remembered that running was mankind's first fine art, our original act of inspired creation. Way before we were scratching pictures on caves or beating rhythms on hollow trees, we were perfecting the art of combining our breath and mind and muscles into fluid self=propulsion over wild terrain.

No wonder so many people hated running; if you thought it was only a means to an end -- an investment in becoming faster, skinnier, richer -- then why stick with it if you weren't getting enough quo for your quid?


Posted on the wall of Vigil's office was a magic formula for fast running that, as far as Deena could tell, had absolutely nothing to do with running: it was stuff like, "Practice abundance by giving back," and "Improve personal relationships," and "Show integrity to your value system." [...] "Eat as though you were a poor person."


Off for a sunset run!

Sunday, April 18, 2010

Ridiculous Requests

The other night Brad and I were talking about gift giving and I was telling him how I think it's ridiculous when girls expect their boyfriends to buy them things like David Yurman jewelry or really anything that costs hundreds of dollars. I also said that if he is going to spend that kind of money, I would like a plane ticket to somewhere I have never been. HOWEVER. I found one thing that is now making me eat my words. I want this.

The Garmin Forerunner. I know it sounds ridiculous to spend $300 on a running watch, but this thing is amazing. It wirelessly tracks your mileage, speed, heart rate, and records your course! So cool.

However, so as to not go back on my word, I think I will just save up and buy it for myself... although I will probably end up buying a few more plane tickets first...

One thing I am going to buy ASAP the new North Face Refraction Jacket. It keeps you warm in cold weather and breathes enough to wear it in hot weather (only needed when it's raining). It's waterproof, blocks wind, and has reflectors on it for my night runs. Only $100! I think I found it for $60 online though. I will report back after I try it out.

Monday, March 8, 2010

Running and food go well together... when running comes first.

After an 8 miler, we like to eat. I made chicken asada, steamed spinach, tomatoes, garlic and whole wheat rotini, and edamame. Followed by strawberries for dessert. I am trying to get better at taking food pictures...