Call me easily impressed

When I was a teenager, I drove by a kid I knew who was out running. Assuming he had started running from his house, I was AMAZED at how far he gone. And then to think he would have to turn around and do it all over again to get home...mind-blowing. I was so impressed, in fact, that I would actually think about it from time to time. When I'd drive by the spot on the road where I'd seen him, I'd remember that somebody had actually ran that far.

Today, over a decade later, I finally coursed it out on Google maps to see just how far this running god had really gone:



In case the image resizing makes it too hard to read, Prefontaine ran a whole 1.4 miles. Good hell.

Shoe Update

I haven't been running much lately, but the few miles I have put in have been simply delightful with my new shoes. Here's a quick snapshot of just how flexible they really are.



This picture may imply that they're only really flexible in that one area, but really they're like that everywhere. I just didn't feel like manhandling them for too long while I struggled to take a decent picture.

I've also started running in them sock-less. Initially, I was resistant to this due to the ew factor. It only took trying them on without socks to not care anymore. Plus, I never seem to have clean running socks anyway, so problem solved.

In other I haven't been running news, the 5 or so pounds I gained while I was doing my most intensive marathon training have suddenly disappeared since I've gone semi-lazy. I'm considering starting a weight loss program involving eating massive amounts of fat (I entered a couple days of eating in an online food diary analyzer thing and whoa, oh whoa, do I apparently like myself some fat) and laying around.

I need shoes to run barefoot

Partially influenced by the running shoes might be bad article, partially influenced by the barefooted marathoner, partially influenced by Terri's brother, and partially just because now (when I have no real running goals that I have my heart set on) seemed like a good time to experiment with such things, I decided to buy myself these beauties:



That's right, the Nike Free.

Probable topics for a blog roughly a month in the future include I'll never go back to stiff shoes again, My shoes busted apart mid-run, and Dude, I spent $67.98 to injure myself.

For those of you reading this who tend to worry about such things (I can think of a couple), know that I am easing into them very slowly.

I don't want your crap, Biggest Loser

Anybody else watching the new Biggest Loser hawk crap on QVC tonight? Holy awkward. Best quote so far: "You want to lose weight gradually." Uh...this coming from the Biggest Loser camp, where the more weight you lose every week the better.

Biggest Loser Commentary

Please enjoy these random thoughts as I watch the Biggest Loser finale.

1. Three hours?! Are you trying to kill me here? Yet I know I'll watch all 3 hours.
2. Am I the only who can't tell the difference between these 2 girls we're supposed to vote for for next season? Clearly they had an opening for a young, blonde, pretty female.
3. With her new hair, Kristin looks like Pink. No? Also, I've consistently felt like she could get an extra pound of weight loss just be taking her earrings off before weigh-in.
4. "Now it's like 'Ooo. Let's ask her out. Let's dance with her.'" What. A. Quote.
5. Might I suggest you check this out for entertainment during all this filler.
6. What a**hole decided it was a good idea to have the contestants finish their marathon on the beach? Were they just not thinking? Thinking only of what would look nice on tv? Purposely cruel?
7. Did Tara have a tanning accident?
8. America voted, and the winner is.....THE YOUNG, BLONDE, PRETTY FEMALE!!!
9. Biggest season. Yeah, yeah, yeah, I get it.
10. BOOOOOOOOOO

Done and done!

That's right, my dear blog friends, I survived my marathon. Because I'm not real big on race reports, let me sum it up with the following:
Miles 0-13: Feeling good!
Miles 13-20: Feeling ok
Miles 20-26.2: Feeling like I'm going to cry and/or trip on the leg that I can now hardly lift.

I know. Real original. Other things I took note of:
1. I saw a girl wearing two race chips. Now, I'm sure there's some legitimate reason why she might do so (one is old and she never took it off like those guys who have a billion lift tickets on their winter jacket??), but given that I love a good scandal, I'm going to say she's suspect.
2. Some guy ran barefoot. Hope he had his tetanus shot.
3. Granted I only heard this for a few seconds as he zipped the other direction during an out and back area, but I think one of the pacers may have been spouting propaganda. For those few seconds, I was glad to not be a 3:40ish marathoner.

Stats:
Chip Time - 4:39:57
Pace - 10:41
Those are about the only stats the marathon apparently feels like giving out without a fight.

I'm really quite happy with my choice to run Vancouver. The volunteers were awesome. There were a ton of gel and hydration stations, all of which had enough supplies to let you take all you wanted. Tons of post-race food. Organization was tops. The doctors/nurses/volunteers at the med stations were doting. The course was a great tour of town. Etc. etc. etc. I really could not have asked for more from a race. So thank you very much to all of those who helped put on the race this year as well as the city of Vancouver. We had a great time!

But just as important, thanks to all of you. It's been incredible how much encouragement and support I've received from my readers, most of whom have never even met me. It really has meant the world to me.

Shoes for the laid-back lifestyle

Not to dash Chris's shoe excitement, but I was just reading this article about how we might be better off running barefoot than in expensive running shoes. Among the more interesting quotes (in no particular order):

Runners wearing top-of-the-line trainers are 123 per cent more likely to get injured than runners in cheap ones.

Despite all their marketing suggestions to the contrary, no manufacturer has ever invented a shoe that is any help at all in injury prevention

A lot of foot and knee injuries currently plaguing us are caused by people running with shoes that actually make our feet weak, cause us to over-pronate (ankle rotation) and give us knee problems.

Hmm..how much did I spend on my last pair again? Now, how much have I spent on physical therapy/doctor bills lately? Nevermind. I'd rather not do the math. All that being said, I'm not really a barefoot kinda gal.

In the reader comments, I learned about Vibram FiveFingers ("the only footwear to offer the exhilarating joy of going barefoot "). Has anybody seen these before? They're essentially a glove for your feet. A couple things come to mind.
1. The toe separators sort of creep me out. Then again, I have a long history of being creeped out be toes.
2. They remind me of the JJ Casuals sketch from SNL. You know, the shoes from Jack Johnson that look like feet. No? I would include a video here, but I couldn't find one.