Long Run Saturday

• 7.5 miles in 1:13:33

Took an ice bath, am now lounging in bed incapable of doing anything remotely productive. I think the combination of upping the distance, running in the heat and the BLAZING sun in Central Park (note to self: do not run in Central Park if it's over 60F - you will die), well it's all just turned me into a limp noodle. Oooh, maybe in celebration of irony, I will make myself pasta for dinner.

This has been a post.

Track Party Thursday

You know what the worst thing is?

(Well, besides injury, death, so-close-yet-not-BQ times and PWs?)

Finding out the track you were running on is short. UGH.

So I dragged my ass out of bed (even though I didn't want to), and got to sprinting (even though I REALLY didn't want to). And it's hard. I officially hate 800s. Mostly, I think it's too early for them, so I think for the sake of my sanity, I'll stick to 400s until I build up some sort of track endurance. But anyways, there I am dragging my ass and huffing and puffing and I'm seeing 3:10's and 3:20's on my Garmin and I'm like,   ok, this might be worth it.

Except then I look after, and each lap is only 0.42. 0.42. Instead of 0.5. And that feeling? It's the WORST.

So I had to recalculate. Turns out I did a much less respectable 3:40, 3:53 and 4:00 (for each actual 800). <-- There's that 4hr marathon I've been promised. But gathering from how I felt running that 800 675 meters, I doubt that's happening any time soon.

Bah humbug.

Also, please send me your favorite track workouts (that do no include 800s, or at least not in great quantity)? So far, I've just been picking random distances with random reps, but I've yet to hit the sweet spot of hard work x satisfaction.

Spectacular Saturday

Saturday is my relax-from-life day. I sleep in (well, not so much today due to crazy people DRAGGING SHEETS OF METAL outside my window at 8am). I pretend to work. Instead, I slow peruse things online and do homey things.

Oh, and I run. Saturdays rock.

It was just the most glorious day for running ever. The sun was out, the sky was blue, the air was a little bit chilly (so you didn't get heatstroke in the sun) and life was wonderful.

I mean, doesn't all that greenery just make you SO happy? No, just me? Ah well ...

I did the big-ish loop of Central Park (although I skipped out on running the Harlem Hills and just ran around the reservoir on the way back). I definitely thing the track training will help with improving pace - in fact, I was already feeling it :) (That may be just in my head, but hey, if it helps, I'm thinking it.) I still have a problem getting all warmed up, so I typically don't get into the zone until around 3 miles, ie. the turnaround at Columbus Circle. I just can't keep my breathing even on the uphills, and the downhills are not that relaxing either. So that's something I'll be working on. Like for longer run days, maybe I'll do a couple of sprints in Riverside Park, which is fairly flat, before hitting Central Park. Thankfully, I'm not there yet.

• 6.76 miles in 1:03 - so 9:30 pace, feeling GREAT
• (except for the fact that every guy running passed me. With ease. GAH. Also, I think the ratio of men to women was 10:1 ... gals, where are you guys? Are you more early-morning people? Sunday people? Non-Central Park people? Where do I find you?)

I'll leave you with my ugly mug (I was pretty runner's-high-ing it at this point and I think I was grinning at every single person whom I ran past, but in retrospect, all they probably saw was a weird grimacing girl).

Also, another picture of the reservoir. I should just call my blog the Reservoir Appreciation Blog, because clearly, that's all I do. But it's just sooooo pretty!

I'm rrrrunning in the rain ... and I am sort of happy again

I actually managed to wake up really easily today, and was all ready to get the run out of the way. So I didn't really check the weather this morning ... and it doesn't help that my windows face a wall.

Guess who was in for a surprise?

 That would be me.

Because by the time I got my slightly-sick-and-not-over-these-sniffles self up to Central Park, I realized that it was actually raining pretty significantly and that this was really stupid in terms of my health. But, as everyone knows, I'm like the most stubborn person alive. Or EVER. So obviously, there was no way I was turning home. Besides, I was already wet by that point, so the whole not-getting-sick bit was probably a lost cause by then.

I did however naturally speed up because ... well ... the raindrops wouldn't fall on me as much if I just ran faster than them! Brilliant! I'm clearly a genius in the morning ...

It did however translate to a stellar run, where I'm proud to report that I managed to log 8:XX miles for the first time since last fall! (Aka the last time I was training consistently; actually following your training plan WORKS, what a concept!).

• 3.41 miles in 29:39, an 8:42 pace

I LOOOOOOOVE running right now. We'll see if this runner's high can last though ... I think if I develop pneumonia, it might put a damper on things.

Rrrrrrunning

I'm a lazy butt who hates uploading pictures from her camera onto her laptop, which means that obviously no posts can be written, which means she's a bad bad blogger.

But lo, what post yonder appears? It is a post about running, and running is awesome.

No seriously. I'm finally getting back in the groove after not running the entire summer, and while it's often not pretty, it is getting a bit better. Usually, the getting-better happens after the 3rd mile, which is quite a problem on those short 2-3 mile runs that keep happening (mainly because I don't feel like fracturing my legs again).

Tuesday - as usual, I ran my 3.5 miles in Central Park and of course I ran by the Reservoir, because I'm apparently incapable of running anywhere else.

Old photo, but who wouldn't want to see the beautiful reservoir ONE MORE TIME?!?!

I was going to run again on Thursday, but then I acted like a clumsy fool and slammed my foot into my door frame, resulting in a very purple and swollen toe that refused to fit into a shoe. Any shoe. Walking to work was fuuuuuuun.

So that meant that Saturday, I really HAD to run. I finally got my shit together around 5pm (whoops, what happened to the whole day?) and headed out.

New York, why are you so pretty all the time?

Basically, I headed down the drive, which sucks up until 96th or something and then rocks all the way to 65th because it's all downhill. I love downhills, not gonna lie. I would take downhills over uphills anyday (who wouldn't?) but then again, I realized that the old adage is true.

What goes down, must come up.

Or something like that.

So the whole backside of the loop was all uphill. Which was just grrrrreeat.

• 6 miles at 9:45ish pace

But hey, I have this super sweet secret for dealing with the parts of running that aren't so awesome. Wanna hear wanna hear wanna hear?

I know you do. Well, here goes. You just visualize yourself ... winning a marathon. No seriously. Like running in front of the crowd, epic sprint to the finish, break the course record type of deal. Just on replay for the duration of the run.

Sorry for the defacing, Salina

Totally does the trick. Before you know it, your run's over and you've won the Boston, New York and Chicago Marathons. Twice.

What?! Anna, running?

Yep.
It happened.

I actually packed my food the night before. And laid out all my clothes. And woke up at 7am. And actually ran!

3 beautiful morning miles (albeit with some insole pain, yet again! Gah, will it never stop?). Note to self: UM, DON'T TAKE BREAKS FROM RUNNING, YOU FOOL.

Oh also, I was thinking about what Ali on the Run posted about her thoughts during running and I remembered my whole 'see-an-attractive-person-and-speed-up' plan.

EXCEPT ...

Everyone is attractive. And fast. So instead of intervals of sprinting when I see beautiful people and chilling out when I don't, I'm just constantly sprinting. So that's fun.

Also, at the end, when I was in my sprinting daze, I thought I saw Ryan Hall. It obviously wasn't him, but Ali got my mind onto running celebrities so I kept thinking I was seeing famous people.

Oh wait, that happens every time.

This is why I would never ask a celebrity for an autograph unless I actually saw an entourage with them - because chance are, it would actually be a regular person that I was stalking and they would think I was weird.

That is all.

I'm a Wheelin' in NYC

So this long weekend has been slightly sabotaged by my stupidity. I may have worn a new pair of heels on Friday, which ended up being full of me running errands and such, with the result that I had a whole patch of skin on the bottom of my foot come off. If there is a more annoying spot for a blister, I have yet to experience it. Although I'm sure I will.

What this did mean was that I spent the whole Saturday at home. Inside. Sitting down. I thought I was going to die of boredom/heat/exhaustion from doing nothing.

So yesterday, I made SURE to do something exciting.

... that would be biking in Central Park! I figured, if I can't walk, I can at least ride. And guess what? It was a ridiculous workout. I had no idea Central Park was so hilly! I think it was also the slightly suspect bike that I rented (on the cheap) from some un-licensed black guys that made it harder. Let's just say the brakes were ... well, it was just better to coast through the downhills and wait until gravity did its work to stop me.

But my goodness, it was so exhilarating! I absolutely loved it.

 

It was so peaceful to just be coasting along. (Also, I may have taken the point-and-shoot camera name at face value ... and let me just say kids, don't shoot and ride. It's not good for those pedestrians you almost bowl over and it's not that great for the blurry photos either).

 

You also find out things you never knew - like that Central Park is incredibly full of people in the summer! (What a surprise. I guess because the last time I was in Central Park, it was a drizzly day in mid-March, that people didn't generally hang out there - but I was wrong). And also - apparently, there's a pool! 

And just in case you weren't fully convinced of my awesome multi-tasking skills, I took a selfie ... while riding downhill. Through a traffic light. (Mind you, it was one of those little ones in the park that are more of a suggestion than a method of traffic control). I am clearly boss at this.

After such an adrenaline rush, I decided a more low-key saunter through downtown would be a good idea. And somehow I ended up in the mall. (Surprise?) I then spent the next 45 minutes trying on running shoes and getting my gait analysis. While with a hole in my foot. Who is the brightest of them all? Clearly not me, because my foot started hurting more AND I didn't even buy any shoes because I couldn't decide. That, and buying running shoes while actually unable to run just seemed a little silly.

Now the reason I had to cut it short (because let's face it, if I didn't have a schedule to follow, I would've been indecisive-Anna for the rest of the evening) was that I had evening plans. Because just up the road from Central Park is Lincoln Center ...

Where I enjoyed an evening screening of Il Trovatore on the big screen. And let me tell you, it was PACKED. Holy moly - I arrived early, and I was barely able to snag a somewhat centrally located, not-too-far away seat ... but my friend, whom I was supposed to meet and see this with? Well she and her company arrived about half an hour later and had to just sit on the ground! (Was I a bad friend for not joining her? Whatever, at least my butt was comfortable for 2.5 hours).

Sitting there and enjoying the show just made me realize how incredibly lucky I am to be in New York. I mean, the city is amazing. Here I was, sitting outside, surrounded by all of the gleaming sky scrapers, with their windows full of twinkling lights, and I was listening to opera. For free.

Moments like that really reaffirm that I made the right decision to come here.

In any case, the opera was wonderful (as it started, I actually realized that I had heard it before, but hated it, so I was a bit apprehensive; but this time around, it was somehow much more engaging and had a greater emotional effect on me, even though it was the same production). It's just too bad that this whole watch-opera-for-free-outside thing is ending either on Labour Day or the weekend after.

Now the opera ended at 10:30pm, which as everyone knows, is my bedtime. So it will come as a shock to you that I actually spent time with my friend E and her crew, walking with them uptown and chatting this late at night. I am serious, this is a big deal. And it was great - there was a definite drunk-but-not-actually-drunk atmosphere, where you talk as though you've had a bit, but actually you're all bright eyed and bushy tailed.

Of course that only lasted so long, so I abandoned them once we meandered into Fairway and took the train home. 12PM guys. I am now officially so legit, I'm too legit to quit. Except for tomorrow, when I'm going to bed at 9:30pm to compensate.

Hanging Out

I won't even try to catch up on posting. I'll just pretend that nothing of import happened in the last month. It probably didn't. I don't even remember. I do miss blogging about all the cafes I go to though. But let's just say, I have 1-3 cups of coffee a day. Pretend like I blogged about them. Ok, the end.

But ... I did decide to try something exciting for once (it may have been due to my gym membership expiring and this class was free and you know how I like to take advantage of free things).

http://www.stevenashfitnessclubs.com/programs/anti_gravity.html

Anti-Gravity Yoga!

I was super pumped. PUMPED. Now, I didn't know what to expect, and honestly, I was a little apprehensive (has to do with the fact that all sorts of flipping/inverting becomes very difficult when your butt outweighs the rest of your body). But it was super duper fun! 

This class was definitely not as yoga-y as regular yoga classes. I mean, we did do some basic postures (all with the sling) and at the end, Cocoon pose was definitely helpful for savasana (best. pose. ever. just imagine yourself hanging in the air, enveloped in silk. yup. best. ever). But the fun stuff, like the flips and the inversions, was more about the fun than about the yoga. Of course for someone who has long harboured delusions of being a Cirque du Soleil performer (poor Mom had to walk into many a situation when I had somehow fallen into a wall during a pirouette/got stuck stretching/broke a table during my 'interpretive dancing'), this was a wet dream.

Let me just say that I was a bit skeptical of these slings holding all xxx pounds of me. But the instructor assured us that these silk slings can hold up to 1000 pounds (which of course made me think of just who they were targeting these slings for). Because it's true, the slings support you during balance poses you might not have been able to do otherwise, but in some other hanging poses, the sling can definitely dig into your skin and I could certainly see the advantage of being skinnier at those times.

In any case, as soon as I jumped into it, I decided immediately to rig something similar up at my house. Somehow. I see many a bedsheet sacrificed in the future towards my 'exercise and fitness' endeavours.

So. Much. Fun. I would just sit around and swing in it all day. 

And of course do fun poses like Vampire Pose. Chanelling my inner Bella, that's right.

But seriously though, while we were doing all the stuff, I thought, 'hey, well this is all fun and games but it's not really "exercise"'. WRONG. My muscles definitely feel the TRX-like lunges and stretches that we did. And the planking. And all the ab support needed to hold poses like the one above.

Yes, I may have just bought an unlimited summer pass. I am so going to pass off acrobatics-in-a-bedsheet as legit exercise. Just try it and thank me later.