Changing Seasons

I'm a huge fan of the colder seasons....it's a harsh adjustment when the weather suddenly shifts but I really enjoy Fall / Winter running. All the recreational runners retreat indoors (no offense intended) and the trails belong to me! I'm free to belt out horrendous 80's tunes without abandon and squat behind any bush that I please without fear of being caught...and subsequently listed on the sex offender registry. In hot weather, there is NO relief absent stripping down naked and finding someone that will run / ride alongside you with a hose. Cold weather just requires the proper gear and a positive mental mindset....If conditions become frigid, you just pile on another layer until you look like Ralphie from The Christmas Story.



Our first real snow!

I'm coming off three weeks of super solid performance - 76, 82 and 62 miles.... I feel like a beast! This week, I'm focused on integrating more cross training....I've begun doing something that is so far outside my comfort zone that it's downright hilarious - HOT YOGA. I've never been into yoga....I went to a class about two years ago and it was irritating to say the least....it was advertised for beginners but the poses were insane (headstands WTF) and the instructor kept telling the class to get in touch with our "inner Vishnu". I'm not the meditative type - I am just not that zen. Anyway, I keep hearing that yoga is AWESOME for runners and I have friends that recommended this studio near my office. I signed up for a beginner class and surprisingly didn't blow it off.... ninety minutes in that room was torturous.... it's probably the hardest thing that I've done in a LONG time. Embarrassingly, I was in the "resting" pose - trying not to die in a literal pool of my own sweat and tears - for the majority of the standing poses. The instructor asked me, with a concerned expression, "Are you OK?!?" no less than five times. I proved (once again) that flexibility and grace are traits that I'm sorely lacking. But like any challenge....I MUST CONQUER IT.... I couldn't make another class last week because I was battling some health funk but I made an effort to practice the poses so that I'm not a total disaster this time around. And this time....I'm bringing like five gallons of ice cold water with me (just kidding....well, maybe).  Maybe I'll become one of those people that has a profile picture of myself doing some crazy yoga pose with a mountain backdrop.....eh.....doubtful.

On that note, enjoy these token pictures of my Yoshimi playing in the leaves...

Trail of Terror

I feel like I'm finally reaping the rewards from with months upon months of hard work. Things are just clicking. I'm waiting for the ball to drop (damn pessimism). Last week, I ran 77 miles....that's my second highest mileage that did not include a race. Generally, I have a run ratio of 80 percent suck, 20 percent glorious...Last week that was reversed....And man, it was incredible.

My week ended with my FIRST 5k....My son and I ran it together....Well, for the first mile. I told him prior to the start that if he felt that he wanted to run faster than me, he should. I had put ten miles on the legs that morning and I was running with a notoriously distracted canine so... I still thought that I might accidentally push HIM too hard....HAHAHAH....

Almost from the beginning, he was eager to get in the front. In heavy wind, sideways rain....he remained undeterred....he chugged up hills, he passed the other young hooligans....even after missing the 5k turnaround (extending our 5k into a 4 mile adventure).... he WON his age group and placed within the top ten OVERALL. Of course, I'm proud but I'm more impressed than anything. Dominic came in so fast that Jeff wasn't even prepared with the camera.



Typical elusive teen

Proof that Yoshimi is the most photogenic one in our family