Running

First off, thanks for all the wonderful comments! I feel like I've made a whole slew of friends here lately. This challenge has been a blast! Not sure how much longer I will post pics, maybe I'll try posting my food log from sparkpeople or something. I like the extra bit of accountability, and I think its spurred some good conversation.One thing this challenge has reinforced for me is the belief that if you want a diet to work, you have to make a diet that will work for you. Some people avoid sugar like the plague because it sets off binges, which it doesn't for me (I just don't eat it because it isn't good for me and its loaded with empty calories), some people avoid red meat (I don't eat much but I will have a steak now and again). I think yogurt is mostly gross but some people love it for breakfast - you get the idea.Figuring out what you like, what amount of cooking you are willing to do, and what foods allow you to lose weight successfully seem to be critical. They may also be subject to change over time. I love to cook and am very good at planning our meals and doing weekend prep work. The personal trainer at work is after me to set up a side business selling prepared meals. Its a pretty good idea. I know he & his wife eat out all the time because neither have the time or inclination to cook. He figures it would be cheaper to outsource to a personal chef than eat out as often as they do. Maybe that will be my third career!Anyway, today's exercise was Shaun T's Rockin Body Disco Party. That guy cracks me up - I was really giggling at some points wth all his gyrating. :-) I can't do the moves half as well as anyone in the video (of course!) but I was up & moving for 40 minutes, so its all good.Food - do I even need labels any more? I eat the same thing every day!Dinner was lentil soup with chicken kielbasa, roasted green beans, and a fudgecicle.

What if you could torch a bunch of calories just sitting around? It turns out you can, but there's a catch.ACTIVE.com

Eating before a run can help or hurt your workout. Decode your perfect pre-run fuel plan with this advice. ACTIVE.com

If you haven't prepared well for a marathon, should you still run it? Find out if you've done what's necessary to run the distance well. ACTIVE.com

Runners who already follow a structured training plan are closer to their 5K potential than those who only run easy. But, a PR is still possible for advanced runners; here's what to do. ACTIVE.com

Avoiding gluten doesn't mean you have to lose out on energy. These dishes are packed with plenty of carbs to fuel your runs. ACTIVE.com

First a quick tutorial (for Jess). Chin-up = palms in. Pull-up = palms out. The difference in grip = different muscles worked. Both stress the back/lats and biceps, but chin-ups work your biceps more and pull-ups more the lats. You'll get more detailed analysis here and elsewhere, but that's the gist of it. For me, pull-ups are more difficult. Yesterday's run was the first time I've cracked a 12-minute mile on trails all year. The Buckeye Trail in Brecksville was dry and empty. Only one major climb required walking, so otherwise the winding paths kept me flying. It must be time to up my distance though, as my exhaustion soon passed. My runs still have mostly been timed, with my watch timer set for a 35-minute out and back. When I was done running, I sat on a picnic table for a few moments and then decided to stop by the Sand Run Parcours Trail for a set of pull-ups. This time on the higher bar mentioned in yesterday's post. FYI, leaping up to the bar takes a lot out of you. I managed three consecutive pull-ups before having to drop down, and then I was done. I tried but couldn't do another rep on the higher bar, so I switched to the one where my toes still touch the ground and managed three more solid reps and a few half-assed attempts before calling it quits. That familiar feeling of soreness that was lacking in the prior day's set of pull-ups was felt again. My body buzzed from exhaustion. It was a good day.

This new series is guest blogged by Doug Logan. Doug Logan was the CEO for USATF from 2008 until September 2010.  He was also the CEO, President and Commissioner for Major League Soccer from 1995 to 1999.  To read more about his background and involvement in Track, Soccer, Rugby and the Music industry, read my Freelap Friday Five Interview. SHIN SPLINTS REDUX Let’s Try This Again Jimson finally talked me into it. I have been contemplating resuming my blog after three years of exile and he finally pushed me to start again. We were sitting on some sunny steps on the Via Veneto in Rome earlier this month after a glorious espresso macchiato and we agreed I would post once a week. So, here we go. Many of you may remember my prior commentary published over a two year period of time on the USATF website. The subject matter was eclectic and at times provoked hostile reactions. I called the blog Shin Splints because I intended to be mildly annoying but not so hurtful as to be truly painful. I occasionally was influenced by my love for music and literature and was honest to admit my perspective was influenced by my military combat experiences and my bi-lingual, multi-cultural upbringing. This post will be no different. During the coming weeks I will address current issues in this wonderful business of sports. What will be different for this site, however, is that my point of view will not be that of an athlete, or a trainer, or a coach. My slant will come from one who has worn a suit to work for the past four decades as an administrator, owner, marketer, and commissioner of teams and leagues. However, despite the fact that I have been blessed to make a daily living involving one of my passions, I am first and foremost a fan. While I plan to consider all sports, my knowledge of track and field and of futbol will probably dominate my musings. I have a lifelong admiration for athletic speed and its interrelationship with almost all sports. I once heard an old baseball scout declare “speed doesn’t slump“and the implications of that statement are fascinating. I also intend to discuss the topic of aging, particularly in this era. I turned 70 on May 11th this year and am now a part of a unique class. My peers and I are healthier, fitter and have a clearer mind and more energy than any generation before us. With the miracles of modern medicine, a focus on appropriate nutrition and rest, and a disciplined exercise regimen, we can expect to live another 20 plus years with a decent quality of life. So, now what the hell do we do? One of my favorite singer/poets, Leonard Cohen, has an opening lyric to one of his songs that goes “I’ve been sentenced to twenty years of boredom”. Employers no longer want us, our children no longer need us, women [or men] no longer flirt with us, and, despite our fitness, we have lost our grace and speed. Speed may not slump, but it sure erodes. I will attempt to memorialize my quest for relevance as I enter this “fourth quarter” of my life. There is an old saying about professional athletes experiencing two deaths. One takes place at the end of their competing careers when they approach a life without the adrenaline rush they experienced as elite combatants. Those who survive the transition successfully find replacement activities to occupy them and fulfill them. As a new septuagenarian, I feel I should pattern myself after athletes who have discovered utility in the balance of their lives. I will write and let you know how I am handling this. A final topic that I will spend some time writing about has to do with what I call, tongue in cheek, geriatric fitness. I spent many years running; running so I could eat more, running to compete in road races, running so I could feel better, and running so I would have a daily physical goal. Those years of pounding hard roads in bad shoes have left me with arthritic ankles, periodic sciatica and an order from my doctors to stop running. What I have become is an o

Photos by Gary, Washington Co., MDSeems like in music and culture there's a mystique about being southbound (think Allman Brothers, here).Maybe it's images like the lure of warm weather, barbecue on a hot summer day, fireworks on the 4th of July, relaxed lifestyle, the Gulf, whatever, if you say "Northbound" it just doesn't work.When I ran the other day I just HAD to take a shot of this glorified address rock at somebody's retreat.But on the road just behind me as I took this picture was something that had also headed south, permanently. The odor of skunk combined with the odor of decaying roadkill, was, well, pretty pungent:The connection to Ultrarunning? Once while running at night I stepped right on a dead skunk. After that I usually kept my flashlight on.

This weekend reminded me once again that our paths are far less pre-determined than I once believed. Go to college, graduate, get a good job, work until 60, retire….then you enjoy life. Anyone else grow up assuming that was the only way to do things? I’m not saying it’s the right way or wrong way, just that now I realize it’s not the ONLY way. In August, I flipped that model on it’s head when I took a sabbatical from my consulting job for what I would call a mini-retirement. This idea was initially planted in my subconscious from oddly enough an HGTV house hunters episode!! A young couple moved to Costa Rica for two years to surf, assuming that at the end of it they would head back and do something more “corporate”. Mini-retirements have been further popularized by Tim Ferris in The 4-Hour Workweek (an interesting read for anyone considering an entrepreneur life). It takes the same amount of effort to design the life you want as it does to let life happen to you. And whether you actively choose to create the life you want, or sit back to see how life unfolds, you made the decision. - Deepa Maisuria Blend Retreat was a great reminder that more and more people are choosing alternative paths to create the life they want. They are quitting jobs to move to the city of their dreams. They are earning money doing things they enjoy from taking pictures to eating to traveling to fitness to…well blogging! The redesigned lifestyle isn’t just for the creative or “hippy dippy” folks, a lot of great business minds are putting in in practice so they can earn a living while still having a lot more time for family and fun. The redesigned life isn’t about living each day in a bubble of happiness. It takes HARD work to pursue your dreams and MONEY. As wonderful as it may be for people to say “follow your passion” at the end of the day you have to pay the bills. It means evaluating your lifestyle to figure out if you need to cut back, what you really want to experience, what you excel at and what are your true priorities {Tips from Zen Habits and the Art of Non-Conformity}. I imagine it’s a lot like jumping out of an airplane - FREEING and TERRIFYING all in the same moment. EXAMPLES OF LIFESTYLE DESIGNHere are a just a few of the women I met at Blend Retreat who are creating their own path. These examples are simply top of mind because I have been surrounding by them for a weekend. But there are MANY, MANY more examples….and yes I notice there are a lot of Laura’s and Lindsay’s let’s prove they aren’t the only women with the gumption to chase dreams! Lindsay - Her priority in life is her children and she has designed a life with her husband that makes it possible. She spends 2 hours each day training clients and the remainder of her day homeschooling…and then yes blogging in the evening.Lindsay C - Her husband is a pro-triathlete and they have created a lifestyle that allows him to pursue this goal while she supports him with HIGH quality nutrition and runs her own business called Healthy Bites. Laura - She actually has a traditional 9 to 5 job as a consultant, but it allows her to travel to a marathon nearly every weekend of the year!Lauren - Quit her job as a high school teacher and moved across the country because she just had an inner knowing for YEARS that Colorado would make them supremely happy. Now she’s choosing a new path. “It shouldn’t take winning the lottery for you to go after your goals and dreams- anything really is achievable in this short time that we have on earth.”Laura (below) - After helping her own family through an illness, Laura realized she had a true passion for it and left social work to earn her degree in Holistic Nutrition. She is now a certified health coach, running coach and has created plenty of time for her family in the process.Bobbi (above)- Both her and her husband currently work at Forrest Home a Christian camp that allows them to share their joy of life with others! Bobbi is also a personal trainer and