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By kilax, July 30, 2012 6:40 am

Puzzles. 

The extreme dorkiness began in NYC a few weekends ago, when I got it in my head that it would be fun to do a puzzle.  Gina and Steve agreed with me (or humored me) so on the last day there, we searched for a puzzle, found one, and spent about five hours that evening working on it. It was relaxing and a fun thing to do with friends (and they finished it a few days after I left). 

My brother and his wife were visiting this weekend, and they gave me a puzzle and puzzle mat*, and I did not go to bed Sunday night until that puzzle was DONE**. 

My brother’s wife and I started the puzzle  Saturday morning, I roped Erin and Lauren in to working on it Saturday night, and I worked on it with my brother, his wife, Steven and even Data, on Sunday. 

Those trees were a b*tch. Just sayin’.

Apparently I have an odd puzzle piece organization method? I organize by border, then by type of piece- things that look similar go together. Makes sense in my head!

Now that this puzzle is done, you would think that the dorkiness is through (in the puzzle arena, anyway), but no, Gina and Steve sent us TWO more puzzles to work on when they visit in August. 

A beautiful one:

And a purely evil one that may or may not have elicited a text to them calling them curse words:

Really guys, really?!

Ha ha. 

I am not sure why I am finding doing puzzles so relaxing right now. But it really is. It helps me wind down. And it’s kind of addicting. I feel like every time I pass it I have to work on it. Good thing I finished that one before the work week started!

When was the last time you put together a puzzle? Do you find it relaxing?

Growing up, I remember doing puzzles at my Grandma’s cabin whenever the weather was too bad to go outside. She had this awesome puzzle that was a sectional cut through a mansion, and you could see all the rooms and what was going on in them. Only instead of people, there were pigs dressed up and acting like people in the room! I would like to do that puzzle again. It was a fun one!

 *In case I ever need to actually use my dining room table to eat food***, I can roll that puzzle up. 
**And done while listening to the Olympics. I know way more about Women’s Gymnastics than I should. 
***Very unlikely.  

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By kilax, July 29, 2012 7:10 pm

Highlight of the Week: Chasing some club members for my long run Saturday. I couldn’t keep their pace, but it was nice to have other people around for that many miles. 

Monday | July 23, 2012: rest
Tuesday | July 24, 2012: 8 m run
Loc: Around Town, Temp: 79°/80°, Time: 1:21:35, Pace: 10:12 avg, Difficulty: easy/medium, Felt: great
Wednesday | July 25, 2012: strength class
Strength: Weighted bars and medicine balls, Difficulty: medium, Felt: a bit pukey
Thursday | July 26, 2012: 7 m run
Loc: Grant Woods F.P., Temp: 80°/79°, Time: 1:13:45, Pace: 10:32 avg, Difficulty: easy/medium, Felt: decent enough 
Friday | July 27, 2012: strength + 4 m run
Strength: dumbbells/plyo, Difficulty: medium, Felt: challenged
Loc: Millennium Trail, Temp: 77°/76°, Time: 44:04, Pace: 11:01, Difficulty: medium, Felt: so achey
Saturday | July 28, 2012: 20 m run (w/GRC)
Loc: Around Lindenhurst, Temp: 64°/74°, Time: 3:55:47, Pace: 11:47 avg, Difficulty: hard, Felt: like death on my legs
Sunday | July 29, 2012: rest

Lessons learned:

• Maybe run less hills. Every run this week was hilly. Maybe that is not so good for me, until I get more used to them. 
• There’s a lesson in here, somewhere, about strength training, but I am not sure what it is. My IT bands started to hurt Thursday night. They were really sore during my Friday afternoon run. On Saturday morning I could not sit down without bracing myself – my IT bands, quads and butt were so sore. On Sunday I started to feel a bit better. I am not sure WHAT I did in class on Wednesday night – maybe it was just that I didn’t work with my trainer last week and this week was a shock to my body? Or maybe I just worked that hard in class? Who knows. Either way, I could NOT get my legs moving for my long run Saturday. They were just too sore. The run took me forever. BUT – I plan to run the 50K at a slower pace than that run, so maybe it’s okay? We’ll see if I can get the pace down a bit on my next 20+ run. 

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By kilax, July 27, 2012 6:43 am

What is your most vivid Olympic memory? Or if you don’t have one, which event are you most looking forward to seeing this year? Or if you don’t give a crap about the Olympics, tell me why!

Woo hoo, Opening Ceremony today! We’re having a party (for two) at our house. 

My most vivid memory is from the 1996 Atlanta Olympics. I think it’s because that is the only summer Olympic year I was old enough to comprehend what was going on and actually spent time watching TV. In 2008, all I did was hear about Michael Phelps and his 2,478 gold medals. I remember sitting in a bad Chinese restaurant in Stockton, IL, hearing it on the TV.

Way too detailed, Kim. Way too detailed. Well, there will be a lot of that in this post. First, I will answer my own damn question though.

I most vividly remember the USA Women’s Gymnastic Team of 1996. The Magnificent Seven! For some reason, I knew the name of every woman on the team. And I watched A LOT of it on TV – I think I saw most of the events, and of course, Kerri Strug’s vault on her injured ankle! Who can forget that?! And the team gold medal! Woo hoo!

This year I hope to catch as many events as possible – particularly track & field, soccer, gymnastics, shooting, and diving. We’ll see what happens. We don’t have a DVR, and I am not home that much to watch TV – I will be relying on the internets – that means you (okay, and websites) – to figure out what is going on. 

So, I was wondering what photo I should used for this post and decided I had to share a picture of the MOST AWESOME PANTS I EVER OWNED:

How’s that for being patriotic?! American Flag pants?! Aww yeah. I got them at Old Navy, summer of ’01 or ’02. Some man once offered to buy them from me. When I was wearing them. WEIRD.

I used to wear them with this sweet 2008 Olympics shirt, to be SUPER PATRIOTIC. Sadly, my pictures of that are not that great. So just imagine it. 

Also sadly, I do not have either item to wear now. What will I wear? WHAT. WILL. I. WEAR?!?!!?

Anyway, I was looking at this picture and wondering why I have pajama pants on when Steven and Christina are dressed normally. 

Oh yes. 

That was the time I decided I needed to give my sister a piggy-back ride, slipped on a transition strip, landed on it, and had a nail rip through my pants and skin. I still have a scar on my knee. We sure know how to have fun!

And also totally not related, these pictures are of my freshman year of college, and are dated 2002. I have been out of high school for ten years. Craziness. 

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By kilax, July 26, 2012 6:35 am

I finished reading Eat and Run: My Unlikely Journey to Ultramarathon Greatness by Scott Jurek and Steve Friedman this week (thanks again, Gina!).

The book is basically the story of how Scott Jurek was raised, got involved in ultra marathons, started experimenting with (and eventually switching over to) a plant based diet, and dominating ultra marathons (there are also some recipes, tips and facts thrown in).  I knew a bit about Scott Jurek before, but this book really gave a lot more insight in to his life, the characters in it, and his personality. I was surprised reading this and thinking, “Wow, he deals with a lot of deep, sometimes dark, thoughts.” Yet he has so much control over his mind and body. And I loved reading about feeling connected with the earth when doing this long runs and that’s all it is – you and the earth. And also how we get to a point where we can no longer meet our goals and just have to run for the experience (unless you are him and you keep breaking records? ha ha)

These comments don’t make sense if you haven’t read the book, and hey, maybe they don’t make sense if you have. Has anyone read it?

But there were a lot of good things to think about in there, and maybe when I get more organized I’ll write about some of them. Maybe. 

For now, the obvious takeaways are:

1. Scott Jurek is a badass
2. Scott Jurek knows how to run through pain (I mean, seriously, he has done some races with sprained ankles and broken toes and stuff like that. Cray cray.)
3. Scott Jurek can do it all on a vegan diet
4. Scott Jurek probably wouldn’t even consider a 50K an ultramarathon…
5. Scott Jurek is confident and doesn’t doubt himself

Let’s say I was inspired. 

Okay, really, let’s say I read this book about a man running 100+ miles through crazy conditions and then thought about how I have been waffling back and forth on my decision to run a trail 50K (31 miles) on a course the race organizers describe as (bold emphasis mine):

The forested area, massaged by monstrous glaciers many millennia ago, contains wake-up-call hill climbs of 200-300 feet and enough undulating terrain to challenge even those granite-legged mountain runners. Overall, the soft, forgiving course is 80% singletrack, with slightly wider, equestrian sections sprinkled in between. This is the least technical of all the Endurance Challenge courses.

Least technical? What is my problem? Why have I not signed up yet?

I am sick of telling people I am thinking about signing up for a 50K (I bet they are sick of hearing it). I know I can “run” it. It has a 9-hour time limit, for Pete’s sake. It’s less than 5 miles more than a marathon. 

So I f-i-n-a-l-l-y signed up. 

North Face Endurance Challenge 50K on September 15, here I come (slowly but surely – I just want to finish before the cut-offs at the aid stations!)!

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By kilax, July 25, 2012 4:51 pm

A coworker of mine leaves next week for a two-week honeymoon in Italy. Jealous! He found out I lived in Rome for seven months in 2006 and asked if there were any places I recommended as must sees.

Don’t you love it when someone sincerely asks you specifically for a suggestion or opinion?

I sure do! Someone wants to hear what I think?! No problemo!

I rattled off a list of places to him, we discussed Italy in general, then I started working on an email with specific locations and links for each city he and his wife will be visiting. 

There was only one problem. 

Making this list required that I access my old blog archives from then. That is something I try to avoid. You’d think I would look at them from time to time to “relive the experience,” but I don’t. My blog at the time is a poor representation of studying and working abroad as a young person in their 20s, and damn, living there wasn’t quite what it could have been. 

It was amazing, yes.  It was a once in a lifetime opportunity, yes. I learned a lot about myself, yes. 

But I know it could have been more. 

I was adventurous. I did things that I look back on now and think “How was I brave/stupid enough to do that? How did I figure that out? How was I able to do and see so much?!”

But I know I could have been more adventurous. Sigh. If only I had the sense of adventure I had now. 

And I am more outgoing now too. I did not have very close friends in college. I mostly had acquaintances. I traveled with people sometimes, but no one I talk to regularly now. I’m not really re-living the experience by chatting it up with anyone in present day (especially since I was there for the last three months by myself). 

So anyway. I do not regret much in life. But I do sometimes think “I wish I could go back to living abroad and do it a bit better!” I am thankful to have had the opportunity to do it, and learn so much about myself. 

What I did right – eat gelato almost every day.

And I think it is awesome that my coworker gets to go there for the first time with his wife!

Is there anything you wish you could redo a bit better? Something that wasn’t quite what it could have been?

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By kilax, July 24, 2012 6:10 am

Meet Tranette. 

Tranette is the owner of The Body Studio in Chicago. Tranette gave me an amazing shoulder/back/neck massage last Thursday. Tranette made me feel amazing. Amazing Tranette is going in to my contacts so I can schedule a massage with her for after (or before!) my next big race!

You know what else is (well, was) amazing? The ZOOMA Great Lakes training kickoff last Thursday at Fleet Feet Chicago! I got a chance to hang out with the ambassadors and meet some for the first time (hi Meghan and Laima!), enjoy a free session of yoga, get some free samples, a sweet ZOOMA outfit and meet some people who are either already signed up for, or are interested in, the half marathon or 5K! And extra bonus – I got to hang out with RunningLaur the entire time, who was in town for work from PA. 

I loved talking with all the ambassadors about their workouts and their lives! And I loved talking to the other gals running the race. There is just something about running that unites people. We all speak the same language, I guess!

I hope we can set up some ZOOMA fun runs in the city and burbs for before the race so I have a chance to meet some more of the ladies running. Do you ever attend fun runs hosted by a race before you do the race itself?

Don’t forget! You can use code GLAMB8 for $10 off the half marathon and $5 off the 5k (both are Saturday October 20 in Lake Geneva, WI)! Register here! Prices go up August 5th!

And did you know that ZOOMA is having a fun contest right now?! They are adding a new race location, and if you guess it correctly, you could win a swag bag. Watch the video below, and enter your guess here! I guessed San Diego. A friend of mine just came back from there and it sounded so relaxing… sounds like a good place for a ZOOMA race!

And… more photos from the event:

Freebies!

The ambassadors!

My sexy new ZOOMA outfit. A running skirt! Ooo la la. 

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By kilax, July 23, 2012 6:48 am

On my Friday afternoon run, I thought “Why I am out here running for a second time today, struggling up these hills? What. Is. The. Point. Of. This.”

I love to run. I love getting out of the house and exploring new routes and places entirely on foot. I like seeing how far I can run from my house and get back. Do I have to do an out-and-back or can I do a giant loop? Can I take a little different route today to see something new?!

But geesh. I am NOT fast. And I am not even working on speed right now. I am just trying to survive the heat of this summer without declaring “I HATE RUNNING!” when it’s over (so far, so good).  

So when I am feeling groggy, running hills in the heat, I start to question myself. 

Then it came to me. 

I run to feel accomplished. 

(Only “almost” because I have not yet crossed the finish line in this photo!)

Again – not in a sense of “I am an accomplished, speedy runner” but in the sense of “I set out to do that run and I did it. I accomplished it.”

Is that a bit of a stretch? I hope not, because these days, running and working out is one of the only things that makes me feel accomplished. Or maybe I want to say, that I accomplished something. 

I don’t always feel that way at work (but when I do, it’s a great work day). I don’t always feel that way at home (I cannot cook, I am a slob). And I don’t even always feel that way in my relationships (I am sometimes often very selfish). 

But anytime I do any sort of physical activity, no matter how well it goes, I feel like “Damn. I got that done. I didn’t sit on the couch. I accomplished something.” And then I feel energized to do more in the other areas of my life. 

And that feels good. 

Tell me what makes you feel accomplished!

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By kilax, July 22, 2012 4:25 pm

Highlight of the Week: A long bike ride with Kelly and Erin! Such a fun way to spend time with friends. And I think my butt is finally getting used to the longer rides!

Monday | July 16, 2012: rest
Tuesday | July 17, 2012: 5 m run
Loc: Neighborhood, Temp: 95°/96°, Time: 59:54, Pace: 11:59 avg, Difficulty: medium
Wednesday | July 18, 2012: rest
Thursday | July 19, 2012: yoga
Friday | July 20, 2012: 2.7 m trail run (w/Lauren!) + 6 m run
Loc: Volo Bog, Temp: 72°/73°, Time: 38:48, Pace: 14:23, Difficulty: easy
Loc: Millennium Trail, Temp: 78°/76°, Time: 1:08:04, Pace: 11:20, Difficulty: medium
Saturday | July 21, 2012: 16.25 m run (w/GRC) + 4 m run
Loc: Des Plaines River Trail, Temp: 64°/78°, Time: 3:01:20, Pace: 11:09, Difficulty: medium
Loc: Neighborhood, Temp: 86°/85°, Time: 46:44, Pace: 11:41, Difficulty: easy
Sunday | July 22, 2012: 33.5 m bike (w/Erin + Kelly) + 3 m run + strength
Loc: Millennium Trail to North Shore Trail to McClory Bike Path and back, Temp: 72°/83°, Time: 7:32am-10:55am, Difficulty: medium 
Loc: Millennium Trail to Neighborhood, Temp: 82°/86°, Time: 31:17, Pace: 10:25, Difficulty: medium 
Strength: Jillian Michaels Lose It With Weights (Kettlebells), Difficulty: medium

Lessons learned:

• I am not invincible to this heat. I need to rehydrate big time after hot runs. 
• Yoga feels so good. I am awful at it, but after a short session this week, I realized I miss it!
• It is possible for me to run 6 miles with only 22 oz of water. I have typically been drinking 22 oz every 3 miles, but that was not possible on Saturday, and it worked out okay. 
• It’s difficult to cycle safely and still have a conversation with two people on a busy (windy) trail!
• Life goes on without the Garmin! Mine failed to charge for my long bike ride, and gasp (!!!), I still did the ride. Life is not all about stats. Of course… it was not a run. 
• Jillian Michaels is a good substitute for a session with my trainer. Not a replacement, but damn, she gets me sweaty. 

Reminders for next week:

• Work out earlier in the week! Quit cramming everything in to the weekends!
• Run with friends if you want to run faster… or don’t if you don’t. Ha ha.

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By kilax, July 21, 2012 4:34 pm

After a long run do you prefer to rest or stay active for the remainder of the day?

Oh, I have had some glorious long naps after long runs. But I wake up feeling a bit stiff and sore.  Last year, another blogger (I think it was Linzi!) wrote that she felt so much better after her long run if she stayed active throughout the day – keeping her muscles moving. 

I’ve noticed that too. And I’ve done lots of things (inadvertently) to keep me moving after a long run – sightseeing, swimming, walking around a car show, kayaking, making stuff in the kitchen (eating stuff in the kitchen), a long bike ride, blah blah blah. But I had never done before what I did today!

I actually had to cut my long run short (really, in to two runs) to make it home by 10:00 this morning because I promised Steven I would help him. Help him put the transmission back in his new Datsun.

Steven has had his blue ’78 Datsun 280Z for almost nine years, and got a red (okay, okay, BROWN) ’78 Datsun 280Z chassis in June because the body is in such good condition (better than the blue one!). The plan is to get the brown Datsun running, by moving some working parts over from the blue Datsun and also by using some of the parts on it. The plan is to get it running by next Saturday for a car show! 

Today we put the flywheel, clutch and transmission all back on the car. I didn’t know how any of that stuff worked before, but I sure* do now!

Putting the flywheel on

Going over the Owners Manual with Data

The clutch

Tightening the bolts on the transmission

Three and a half hours later… a bit dirty. 

The active recovery must have worked because I ran a little bit this afternoon and felt good! Slow, but good. But boy, do I stink. I smell like my dad, who is a mechanic. I really need to take a shower. 

And after that,  I do think I will relax and read some more of Eat and Run!

*Okay, sort of know, now. 

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By kilax, July 19, 2012 5:22 am

Whenever I travel I check google and Running in the USA for races in my travel destination. Good habit or bad habit, who knows, but I think it’s fun to check out different events that I otherwise might not ever know about.

When I started talking to Gina about visiting the weekend of the 13th back in May there was only one race on Running in the USA – an expensive NYRR race in Central Park. We weren’t that interested and didn’t pursue it. But I checked the site again in June and all of a sudden there was a plethora of choices, including two events in Astoria, where Gina lives, on July 15th!

There was a 5K put on by the Federation of Italian American Organization of Queens (FIAO) and a 10K tour of Astoria that ended in the Beer Garden. The 5K won with its earlier start time, shorter distance, cheaper cost and location (a few blocks from their home). So Gina signed up herself, her husband, her husband’s brother, and me.

Since the race was put on by the FIAO we decided we needed to dress in the colors of the Italian flag. Who knew that finding a reasonably priced red tank would be so hard? I had looked all over in stores for one for another race in May, and finally found one on Amazon in June. Derp.

Well, that’s a lot of lead up for a 5K. Let’s cut to the chase. Or maybe more of a crawl, than a chase.

It’s July, it’s hot. I only race in the summer for fun. Summer is not PR time for me by any means. But this was such a small race, I decided to aim for 8:00 minute miles and see what kind of placement I got in my age group.

The course was an L shaped out and back. Up an incline, down it, flat, up the incline in reverse, down it. We ran under the Hell Gate Bridge and to the Triborough Bridge. It was 80° and humid. Each mile was slower. I powered through the last 1.5 miles, passing a few and also getting passed. The outside of my left foot was burning from the friction. I told myself I hated running and was never doing it again. But don’t we all think that when we are running 5Ks?

The great thing about the out and back is that I got to see Gina, Steve and Greg (Steve’s brother) and give them high fives on course. And we had spectators – Luca, Gina’s dad and his wife, and Greg’s wife and son. They cheered me on right before the finish. My heart was beating so hard when I was done I thought something was wrong, but I felt better when I took my visor off (even though salty sweat then poured in to my eyes).

Photo taken by Gina’s dad’s wife

I saw Greg finish, then Steve, then I ran back out on the course to run Gina in (read Gina’s race report too! – hers is much more entertaining). I think everyone agreed that the humidity and inclines made the course really challenging, but I still think everyone did really well! A few of us swore never to do 5Ks again but I already signed myself, Gina and Steve up for one out here in August. It will probably be another miserable hot race, but those races are best when shared with friends!

Photo taken by Gina’s dad’s wife

There was a nice spread of fruit (watermelon!) after the race and a kids run too. I have no idea what my final time or place was. Gina and I waited a bit for times to be posted, but they were doing a raffle first and that took a very long time. Maybe they will be up on their site in the next few months. My watch said 26:09 for 3.2 miles (I started the watch before I crossed the start line since it was not chip timed).