Sad realization

So, last night I went to the gym, and Chicago had a significant warm up yesterday. It was like 60. You might be thinking why didnt I run outside...well by the time I got off work it was dark, and I get lost manuvering around my house let alone running in the dark. Plus I am a scaredy cat, and it was windy. Anyways, now that I have conjured up excuses. So, needless to say, hot outside, hot in the gym. So, after I changed I started to walk to the treadmills, and I felt this sense of doom come over me. It was then I realized...gosh, I hate running.

Now I know what some of you will say. Oh you hate it cause you are on the treadmill and cant enjoy the scenery, or its boring. But, the thing is, I have run outside before, and I am not one of those people who can clear their minds when they run. Basically, here is what goes through my head when I run..."I am tired...this is taking forever...ooh this is a good song...eh I am over this song." And so on and so forth. So doing it for like an hour is draining enough let alone when training intensifies and I am running for hours at a time.

So, I ran 5 miles yesterday on the treadmill, even though I was basically over it before I even started. I have a personal training session Monday, so hopefully that will get me reinvigorated. The weird thing is, I love food, and I love not looking like Kirstie Alley, so how come I cant love running.

Oh, and just to round out this blog, Moser smells and sucks at running.

I should have gone to sleep earlier.

I stayed in the city after work for my sister's birthday dinner with her family and my dad, so I almost got home too late to get to the gym. Totally worth it to spend some time with their 19 month (in 30 minutes) old son. But, I ended up getting back just early enough to get in half an hour on the bike on random hills at level 10. I read in a book somewhere that that's roughly the equivalent of riding over the Rocky Mountains from Colorado to Canada.

Seeing an old naked guy in the locker room is gross and annoying, sure. But seeing the same guy on the train platform at 6:50 the next morning going to work, well, that's just weird.

It's getting late, and I have to pack for Philly. I'll be back on Sunday, when it's supposed to be 63 degrees here. It's looking like it'll be a day with a run outside...maybe on the way home from the driving range.

It is so on.

Yeah, that's right, I matched the 4.5 miles with a 1% incline that Beth did a week or two ago.

Wait, what's that? Beth did it at 6 mph? Well, that's pretty good, I guess, if she's trying to beat a turtle. Personally, I thought it would be more of a challenge if I went a little quicker than that. You know, more of a 6.1 for 2 1/2 miles, 6.3 for a mile, 6.5 with a sprint from 7 to 8 at the end kind of a thing. But yeah, I guess if she wants to get all excited about going the distance at what is essentially a brisk walk, or going a tiny bit further while running on what is basically a simulation of a padded cushion of air (she failed to mention that she didn't put in that 1% incline to make it feel more like real running), good for her. Whatever gets her to sleep at night.

Anyway, I knocked out the 4.5 just in time to pick up a few friends for ten cent wings, because, in addition to the cholesterol, calories, and fat, chicken wings have an iota of protein, and nothing washes down a good run better than a couple beers. Then I hung out with a couple of them until a few minutes ago, and now I have to go to sleep, because my alarm clock is going off in 5 hours whether I like it or not.

A lot of trash talking...

So, it has been a while since I have wrote in this blog, much to the chagrin of my fan (that's right singular). Anyways, I was in New York last weekend and stuck there Monday because of some snow storm. For all the trash talking New Yorkers do about how much better their weather is, it sure screwed me. Anyways, Moser and I did in fact run with me on Saturday, and I find it amusing how he bragged about "matching me." That's not something to brag about, and we only did 4 miles, which is less than I usually run but we took it down a lil for Moser. It was kind of weird cause the gym went to had mirrors in front of the treadmills. I felt very vain just staring at myself when I ran, although I must admit, I looked good. :)

Anyways, after not running since Saturday I went back to the gym today and did 5 miles in 46 minutes and 30 seconds. Moser said something about running 4.5 miles at an incline, but as you read I did that a few weeks ago, so its nice he's bragging about things I already did. Also, since I renewed with my gym they had a personal training session for like 20 bux. So next Monday I am meeting with this tiny lil personal trainer from my gym who runs marathons. I am pretty psyched and she seems pretty energetic, so we shall see how that goes.

IM

Beth: i went to the gym today

Beth: actually i didnt

Beth: this was a test of the gym broadcasting system

Beth: this is what would appear if i actually went to the gym

Beth: however this is just a test

Remember Beth? I don't either.

Sure has gotten lonely over here at Jews for Jogging. I'm sure Beth has all sorts of excuses for why she didn't work out today. She'll probably say something like, her transportation from New York City to home got canceled, and she was stuck. Well, I'm not buying it. First of all, I know she has workout clothes and shoes with her, and her membership at Bally's gets her in the door at their NYC locations. Second, my transportation from New York City to home got canceled too, and I managed to work out. Granted, hers was a flight to Chicago, delaying her trip back by a full 24 hours, and mine was the express train to Long Island, and I was able to take the local that left 10 minutes later. Still, it was pretty rough. I had to spend my train ride home on a local train, with the common folk, most of whom, it must be assumed, are lepers.

Anyway, after navigating an LIRR schedule filled with delays and cancellations to get back to Great Neck, I headed out to the gym, and with no running yesterday, I decided to get on the treadmill today and kick it up a notch. I did 4 miles again, and since I ran it at a higher speed than usual with Beth on Saturday, I now know I can do it at that speed, and there's really no excuse not to, so I did it the same way today. But today, I added in that 1% incline that I had mentioned to Beth, to more accurately simulate running outside instead of on a treadmill. It definitely makes a difference. After 2 miles, I wasn't even sure I'd make it to 5k, let alone my goal. But somehow, I got there. Now I guess I'll have to do 4.5 at some point in the next week, especially since I'm signed up for an 8k race a week from Saturday.

An observation I had today: People always tell you the positives about getting in shape. You'll lose weight, you'll have more energy, your posture will improve, all that kind of stuff. Nobody ever talks about the negatives. For example, today I was getting ready for work and noticed that I'm halfway between holes on my belt. I had to decide between being really uncomfortable or feeling like my pants were going to fall off. That's just a lousy choice.

And yes, I know, everyone who took the Bar last week is only thinking one thing after reading that first paragraph: "Leprosy? That's a loathsome disease. You just committed slander per se!" Well, if you are thinking that, I have good news for you. The test is actually over now and you don't have to think that anymore. But I also have some bad news. You thought about the elements of defamation while reading a blog about running, so you're kind of a loser.

Unlazy Sunday

If you listen really carefully, you can hear the sound of Beth not working out.

Apparently, my household was not the only one that thought it would be a good idea to get to the supermarket today, with a forecast of 10 to 14 inches of snow overnight. While spending the better part of the afternoon there after the gym, I had plenty of time to realize this about one of the people I kept passing in every aisle: If you have 3 chins, and you're wearing spandex, you're pissing everyone else off.

Only in New York would it be a superstore.

Good news! My cousin gave me a diagnosis over e-mail on that ankle pain I get. It looks like I might have Achilles tendinitis! I looked it up, and it seems to be a problem in people who increase their activity significantly after a long period of not moving at all. Shocking that that would affect me, when I didn't move at all for the first 21 years of my life and most of the past 5 years as well. Hopefully his advice, to stretch in the morning and at night, in addition to what I already do before I run, helps it out.

So last night I had one of the more exciting Saturday nights I've had in a while. After the 4 hours of sleep, 3 hours of walking, and 4 miles of running, I made it to about 9:30 PM before I realized that I had no idea what TV show I had been watching for the past half hour because I could barely keep my eyes open. So I turned out the light, got into bed, and was passed out by 10. On a Saturday. Am I cool or what? On the plus side, I slept for 11 hours, and I was ready for today's workout.

I had my free personal trainer workout with the new gym today. It was pretty good, I learned a lot of new exercises, but since it was just a sample of what I could get with a trainer, it was more about doing a little bit of everything than doing a few things a lot, which would have been a better workout. Still, it's good to know a handful of new exercises to do, and many of them I can do from home if I want.

Wait, I thought I just heard Beth lacing up her running shoes.

Oh, no, sorry, that was just the wind.