Hills Today

We couldn't decide whether to start hill or speed workouts today. Though we haven't done speed in a while, we are training for the News and Sentinel Half Marathon, which will be hills in August in West Virginia. We opted for hills.

Since the Flying Pig, we have not trained as hard as we should have. Our plan was to maintain a level of fitness and just add distance when needed. Unfortunately, life got in the way and for a couple weeks I was barely walking at all.

Today's hills felt really good. Though we had no number of reps in mind, we ended up doing five -- which is where we left off in May. I'm pretty happy we were able to do so many reps! I'm not sore at all, but I think I'll be feeling it in the morning. I usually do after hills.

I'm excited!

Low-carb, High-protein Diets Explained

Those of you who have read my blog for a little while know that one sure fire way to get me fired up is to spout the benefits of losing weight with a low-carb diet. My argument has always been that you lose weight by burning more calories than you consume -- period.

Today I found a blog posting that explains it all so well! It's from the Health and Beauty Tips blog, and I hope this link will get you there.
http://4-health-beauty.blogspot.com/search?q=low-carb+diet+myth

In the posting, Tom Venuto explains that when in a controlled setting, with accurately measured calorie consumption, all diets work.

However, when people are on their own, it can be easier for them to maintain a high-protein diet over a high-carb diet. The more protein people eat, the less hungry they get. You need to read the entire explanation, the information is very good!

The point is to control calories, get exercise and pick a diet that you can stick with.

Calories Burned Web Site

While trying to figure out how many calories are in the foods I ate today, I found a great web site for determining the number of calories I burned -- The Fitness Website Activity Calorie Counter.

It uses the amount of time I exercised and my weight to determine the calories burned. I like the fact that it lists racewalking separate from walking, and includes six walking speeds from 2 miles per hour to 5 miles per hour. Though plenty of people I know are faster than a 12-min mile, I'm not, so I can use this chart.

I discovered that even a low-key walk this evening burned 170 calories. Nice to know.

Why Won't Wolfgang Puck's Give Nutrition Information?

Occasionally, I eat at Wolfgang Puck's Express for lunch. Though the ingredients are high quality and the food tastes good, the costs are on the high side and I can't find nutrition information on what I ate.

I'm not necessarily trying to lose weight, but I have been thinking about the quality of the food I've been eating lately. Starting today I'm keeping track of everything I eat for the week and estimating the calories consumed.

I'm also tracking the estimated calories burned per day.

At Wolfgang Puck's, the pocket sandwiches drown in dressing and are served with fresh made potato chips. Though I ate only one-half of the Mu Shu Chicken Pocket I ordered, I did eat all of the potato chips. I'd like to know how much damage I did.

So, in an open request to Wolfgang Puck's Express, please make available the nutrition information of the foods you serve at your restaurants!
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I did a semi-casual 45-min walk tonight. Not anything too strenuous, just a walk in the neighborhood.

Weightloss Scams Continue

I'm amazed at what people will fall for in a desperate attempt to lose weight or gain health or fitness benefits. One of the scams is to fake blogs that tout the benefits of so-called weight loss methods. A posting from a real blog goes into more detail on how this new technique is used.

http://fast-muscle-gain.com/495/acai-berry-fake-blog-scam/

Bike Trails Were Crowded Today!

We started our half-marathon training for the News and Sentinel Half Marathon in Parkersburg, WV August 22. At 7:45 this morning we walked 5 miles along the Olentangy River Multipurpose Trail. Though it was already warm when we started, the trail is very shady and kept fairly cool.

It's a beautiful section of the trail and very popular with lots of athletes including runners, bikers and walkers. Today the trail was packed! There were several hundred people in marathon training groups running in packs of 10 to about 50 heading in both directions. It was great seeing so many people out there today!

The trail was so packed though, bikers were having trouble navigating around the groups of runners and walkers. Some chose to try to ride in the middle between the people heading in both directions. I don't recommend that. Most waited behind the groups until there was room to pass. One woman tried to go around a group and almost rode straight into me and my walking buddies! Along that part of the trail there was a chain link fence along the edge and there was no where for us to go!

I actually stopped walking (to avoid her hitting me) and yelled "What were you thinking??" She stopped her bike and got off so we could walk around her.

Anyway, other than that one bike rider, it was a great seeing so many people on the trail and it was a great morning to begin marathon training.

When Putting PowerAde in the Freezer...

be sure the lid is on tight.

Tonight it was HOT when Deb and I went for our walk. According to the thermometer in my car, it was about 89 degrees and I could feel the humidity. There was little breeze and a bad air warning because of the heat and lack of air movement. We walked for just over 3 miles and did not walk very hard. We definitely are not acclimated yet and don't need to push it on days like this.

For the first time in a long time I forgot my water bottle and carrier, though I had a cup of water in my car. As soon as I got home I poured half a bottle of PowerAde over ice and stuck the half empty bottle in the freezer.

The PowerAde really helped and tasted great! I went back to get the rest of the bottle and discovered that not only had I laid the bottle on its side, but I didn't put the lid on tight! Red PowerAde poured all over my freezer!

Luckily it froze and did not spill on the floor.

Note to self: Carry water and put the lid on the PowerAde.

Weird Reaction to Breakfast

After a great walk with the Buckeye Striders yesterday morning, we went to a local restaurant for breakfast. I had some very tasty scrambled eggs with the meal. About an hour after eating, I started feeling sick -- headache, stomach ache and nausea. This lasted for most of the rest of the day.

Though today I feel fine, I could not eat any of the eggs the kids made for their dad for breakfast today. (Ugh!)

Eggs have bothered me on and off over the last year or two. It seems to be happening a little more frequently and a little more severely each time. Other than deviled, I can take or leave eggs. I very rarely crave them and usually eat them only when someone else has already cooked breakfast. (For the record, I love devliled eggs and mine are fantastic!)

The next time I visit the doctor I will bring it up. But from the limited research I've done over the internet it sounds as if I might be developing an intolerance to eggs. In the meantime, I think I'll skip the scrambled eggs for a while.

Getting Back on Track

Three miles tonight. Yep, I'm pretty proud of myself. Walked to the library, one loop around the park and back for a little over 3 miles. Though it was a little warm out, I walked harder than I have been walking recently. I even stopped at Noodles and Company on the way home to pick up a great salad for dinner.

I will begin my speed and distance workouts to train for the Parkersburg Half Marathon next week. (Parkersburg is in August.)

Toasty Tonight

I didn't get out to walk tonight until after 7! Even though it was late, it was pretty toasty. Though the intent of this walk was stress relief, I wasn't very effective -- I didn't walk hard enough to get my heart rate up that hard. I need to get out walking a little more to be acclimated before I work that hard in the heat.

Next week my time should free up. (I hope!)

Scents of Walking

Walking through the neighborhood today, my olfactory senses were unusually sharp making my walk much more interesting. The reason I'm so excited is that my sinuses are usually sore this time of year and I'm lucky to be able to smell anything.

Today's walk featured:
- honeysuckle
- fresh mown grass
- a cookout (ribs maybe?)
- roses
- fabric softener
- random flowering trees
- dogs (lots of dogs)

A good end to a stressful day!

Artificial Sweeteners and Weight Gain

Recent studies with rats indicate that the use of artificial sweeteners could actually cause weight gain because your body anticipates more calories than it is consuming, causing you to either eat more calories or maybe burn fewer calories.

I don't know the science, obviously, but from my own personal experience, I can't see it. I know it is not good for me (and I have cut back), but I drink diet soft drinks and use artificial sweeteners. It isn't even because of the calories. I just really like the taste. I have tried to use sugar or no sweeteners in tea (I put nothing in my coffee) but it just isn't the same. I don't enjoy it.

At the same time, there is nothing that will ruin a dark chocolate candy bar, an ice cream sundae or a piece of cake quicker than a diet soft drink. And when I'm enjoying an ice cold Diet Coke, I really do not want anything with tons of sugar calories. (Truth moment here: potato chips and French onion dip go GREAT with Diet Coke.)

There are lots of artificial foods out there that are not good for us and affect humans in unpredicted ways. So, while I am not discounting the studies, I'm not seeing it in my own experience.

For more information, go to this web site: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080210183902.htm.

Saturday Morning with the Buckeye Striders

The great thing about being a member of a walking club is that every week a group of us get together and walk. Knowing there is that group of people waiting for you can help to wake up early on a Saturday and get out.

The only bad thing about walking with a large group of people is making sure everyone has someone to walk with. I mean, that's the point of being a member of a club, right?

The Buckeye Striders has members of all speeds and fitness levels. We all have a pace we are comfortable with and sometimes we have to alter it to walk with others.

Today we had about 13 people in our group. It was an out and back walk today, and it was really fun the way we took turns walking with each other! Some went faster, some went slower, we traded. It was a good morning!
____________

Note: We met at Tuttle Park, which was especially beautiful today. The temps were mild when we started and it warmed up quickly as we went. We ended up going a little over an hour and I hope we got in at least 4 miles. We were not at our fastest. Still, it was a good workout!

Dancing the Night Away

Though I have not been walking as much as I'd like, I made up for it at a family wedding last weekend. All of us danced so much my entire body ached on Sunday! Even as late as yesterday, my arms and shoulders were still sore. My legs felt heavy earlier today and I could really feel them when climbing the stairs!

It's not the same as consistent exercise or my regular walking workouts. But we all really got our heartbeats up, we sweated like crazy and it was a blast!

I wonder if I can count this as cross-training.

Too Busy to Walk -- Sort Of

Some really tough deadlines requiring lots of overtime, an upcoming family wedding, a "graduation" of sorts, end of school-year events and stress overall have led to my lack of walking this past week. It's not that I didn't walk at all, the walking I did was completely uneventful and low key.

My son and husband walked in the neighborhood with me a couple of times, I walked to the library once, and that was about it. The walks kept me moving a little, and probably helped a little with my stress, but didn't do much else. I didn't raise my heart rate, didn't breath hard and certainly did not break a sweat.

These walks were more for mental health and bonding than for fitness. I thought it was cute when my son asked me to walk with him one night. Alone time with my 15 year old -- at his request!

We still have another week until the wedding, deadlines are looming and the stress is still pretty intense. I don't see any major workouts happening this week with family coming to town and time so short. But I'm hoping that at the least I'll still be able to fit in a couple evening walks.

Happy Memorial Day!

Revised from 2008

Memorial Day is one of those holidays I didn't understand as a kid. It was always May 30, my Grandma's and my sister's birthday. (For a number of years I think my sister thought the parade was for her.) And somehow it signaled the start of summer.

We would always go to visit my Mom's and Dad's families in Port Clinton and Marblehead, OH up along Lake Erie. In my earliest memories, we would go to the parade (standing up each time an American flag went by) then cook out and play all day with our cousins. If we stayed with my Dad's parents for the weekend, we would be fishing the rest of the time.

Later, when Port Clinton added the Walleye Festival, the town had two parades. We only went to one, but I can never remember whether it was the Walleye Parade, or the Memorial Day Parade we watched. As young adults, we would camp out at my parents' old farm house (my grandparents' house) that was on the shore of the Sandusky Bay. We had three acres to hang out on and would invite as many friends as we could to go up for the weekend. We would swim, fish, have camp fires and just have a blast. Dad always had all of the inner tubes inflated before we got there. And he always found a way to get a TV with the Indy 500 close to our personal beach. (I only ever watched the last 5 minutes.) We would all go to the Walleye Festival at least one evening of the weekend.

Things have changed quite a bit now that my grandparents and parents are all gone. We still sometimes go up for the weekend, but we feel more like guests than we used to. The beach is no longer owned by my family, the old farm house is gone and the new house won't be ours much longer either. I haven't been fishing in probably 10 years.

Life is a little more stressful this year than last. Several of my friends have been affected by unemployment, student loans are harder to get, WALK! Magazine folded and I seriously need to buy a clothes dryer and a car for our daughter. And we still own that house that we expected to sell over a year ago.

But that is OK. Some things change, some things don't, and life goes on. Though I thought we were developing new traditions in 2008, the stress of the year caused me to completely forget what we did last year until today. Despite not hosting a big family cookout, and I'm not entered in a Monday race, my family did a lot of relaxing and hanging out together and the three of us cooked out shish kabob. Unfortunately, my husband has to work on Monday. I would have entered a race, but I'm trying to spend less money right now.

Despite our highs and lows this past 12 months, what is important this weekend is to remember that we live in a great country, one of the safest in the world. I'm thankful I have the choice of hosting a cookout, watching a parade or not entering a 5-mile race to celebrate the freedom we have. (I'll enter a race next year, I promise!)

So, on Memorial Day weekend, I hope you have the opportunity to enjoy yourself, your family and our country. And don't forget why we have the freedom to make these choices.

Affected by Heat?

In Central Ohio we've had unusual temperatures. It was colder than typical at the beginning of Spring, and now it is unusually hot.

Normally heat does not bother me once I am acclimated. However, with the sudden heat, I'm not adjusted yet. My walk this morning was just to the library, one loop around the Lane Road Park, and back home for 3 miles total.

That short walk and whatever pollens are prevalent right now wiped me out! Not only was I unable to walk fast, I've been dragging and had a headache most of the day. (Usually after a morning walk, I feel more energized.)

Once I'm acclimated, I'll be fine. It just takes a little time walking in heat for me to adjust.

Walkscapes: Taking a New Look at Walking

To Francesco Careri, the act of walking is a form of art. Careri is an Italian architect, urban theorist and author of the book Walkscapes. In the book, Careri advocates looking for art in everyday life while walking.

OSU has a Walkscapes group celebrating walking for a month (starting in April) and encouraging participants to document their discoveries and feelings. According to an article in the Columbus Dispatch today, the group had several activities to encourage walking and creativity. A couple people participated in a stick-throwing walk intended to help participants experience walking in a new way.

Though I admire the creativity of the students, I don't think this is something I personally would get involved in. But if it encourages walking and exercise, it can't be all bad.

For more information, check out the blog about the movement at http://walkscapeosu.blogspot.com/2009/04/walkscape-osu-is-month-long-open.html.

Hurry! The 30-days ends May 22.

Speedo Man Sighting

Speedo Man was spotted at the river today about 11:45. I caught a glimpse of him when I arrived at the park to eat lunch. I hoped to see him on his way back to his car, but didn't. So, after eating I drove the length of the park to look for him.

He was still heading out in his initial direction -- he hadn't turned around yet. He was not moving very quickly and seemed to be walking more than usual. The biggest surprise to me was that he wasn't wearing a Speedo -- he had on purple running shorts.

I'm glad he is OK.

You Can't Racewalk on Gravel

Yeah, I discovered this by attempting to racewalk around Antrim Lake in racewalking shoes. The trail is mostly packed gravel with a small section of asphalt.

Though I walk around this lake all of the time, today was the first time I've worn actual racewalking shoes here with the intent to practice racewalking form. It was a totally different experience. Because the shoes are flexible, I worked harder at rolling onto my toes and pushing off. Instead of increasing my speed, my foot actually seemed to slip. No matter how hard I worked, I didn't go faster while on the gravel. But as soon as I hit the asphalt, I felt as if I was really moving! In fact, I was faster every loop.

While actually on the gravel, I could really feel my shin muscles. They were working hard!

Despite my shoes slipping, it was still a good workout.
__________

3 loops at 1.2 miles per loop for 53:49 total. Hmmm. That's an average of only 14:57 per mile. But my fastest loop was 17:28 for 14:33 per mile. Imagine if I hadn't been on gravel!
18:41
17:39
17:28

Burn More Calories by Walking Fast

A 2006 article in Runner's World compares the calories burned walking to running and the results were actually surprising to me. Like many people, including Amby Burfoot, the author of the article, I had heard many times that walking burns about 100 calories a mile, just like running.

Amby reported that in the article "Energy Expenditure of Walking and Running," published in December 2005 in Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, a group of Syracuse University researchers measured the calorie burn of 12 men and 12 women while running and walking 1,600 meters (roughly a mile) on a treadmill. "Result: The men burned an average of 124 calories while running, and just 88 while walking; the women burned 105 and 74. (The men burned more than the women because they weighed more.)" Part of the reason runners burn more calories is the push off and landing that doesn't happen in walking and the faster heart rate.

Now here's the part that got me -- the researchers compared running a 9:30 mile to walking a 19:00 min mile! That doesn't seem quite fair.

The author must have agreed because he decided to see what would happen if he compared running and walking at the same speeds: 3.0 mph, 3.5 mph, 4.0 mph, 4.5 mph, 5.0 mph and 5.5 mph. What he learned is that at paces slower than 12 min per mile, running was harder than walking. At paces faster than 12 min per mile, walking was harder than running.

According to Amby: "...walking at very fast speeds forces your body to move in ways it wasn't designed to move. This creates a great deal of internal 'friction' and inefficiency, which boosts heart rate, oxygen consumption, and calorie burn. So, as Jon Stewart might say, 'Walking fast ... good. Walking slow ... uh, not so much.'"

So let's all burn more calories by walking really fast. And, Amby, thanks for the vindication!

Sunday Walk

I didn't get up as early today as I do when I walk with the Buckeye Striders on Saturdays. I did just 30 min. in the neighborhood. It was brisk this morning and I felt chilly in shorts and a light long-sleeved T-shirt, but because of Larry's admonitions, I did not go back for a jacket. I didn't really warm up, but I didn't freeze. I'm learning.

To make today's walk a little more interesting, I decided to do sprints in the shade. I walked as hard as I could when I encountered shade, but kept a moderate pace in the sun. One side of the street was a little tougher than the other, as one side had NO trees.

It wasn't my hardest workout, but I didn't have much time so it worked out well. And it was a great start to a beautiful Sunday.
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After dinner, my husband, son and I went for a 40-min walk in the neighborhood. It was nice! Since I didn't go very far this morning, I felt I really needed it.

Playing Softball in Your 70s

Have you ever heard about Seniors Softball? In Columbus, OH they have leagues for players 50+, 60+ and 70+. That's right, there is a softball league for players who are over 70 years old!

On the radio this morning, I heard a team captain interviewed. The average age of the players on his team is 76.3 years old! I thought he said there are a couple 80 year olds, but I may have heard wrong. There are 14 players per team and the sponsors range from Planks (a bar in German Village) to Tim Horton's and Friendship Village. Of course, the last team could be made up of residents of Friendship Village, too.

Going to the web site to check it out, I found photos of the teams. Yes, these men are fit! http://www.ohioseniorsoftball.com/70leaguepage.html I'm not shocked that 70 year olds are fit, I know quite a few racewalkers in that age range who are very fast. I'm impressed that these men are still playing softball, which lends itself to injury more than racewalking does.

The teams play in the mornings during the week, which makes sense since I'm sure most of the players are either retired or self-employed.

When I picture myself as I age, I always see myself as a walker, hiker, maybe even a trekker. But I have to admit, it never occurred to me that there might be opportunities to play organized sports at that age.

It makes me feel that being 70 today is much like what 50 used to be. Keep it up!

Walking Twice in an Evening

First Walk
Deb and I attempted to do our first speed workout after a half marathon about 10 days ago. Since then, she also entered a 4-mile race at a great pace and I got a workout hiking several miles in Hocking Hills.

Our plan was to do 1/4-mile sprints. We walked for just one-half mile to warm up, but probably should have done a little more. During the first sprint my shins were killing me! I had to slow down about halfway through.

Based on the pain and stiffness, we decided to do 1/4-mile cool downs between sprints. Gradually our shins loosened, but not enough. I think it was too early for us to be working that hard. After sprints of 3:27; 3:23 and 3:36, we decided to just walk our regular pace for a mile and a half and try again when she gets back from vacation.

Second Walk
The second walk tonight was with my husband. After dinner, we did a 45-min tour around the neighborhood. One of the things I like about walking with him is he takes different routes than I typically do. It's not like our neighborhood is all that large, but there are several cul-de-sacs and a few streets I don't typically take. It was nice!

It felt good to get in the extra miles. It was a good day for walking!

Decisions, Decisions, Decisions

The thought of going to Antrim Park today to walk a couple of loops around the lake in the sun was pretty exciting! It was a beautiful day and my son didn't have a baseball game for me to go to. I couldn't wait!

At the same time, I had a bunch of books to return to the library and I needed to stop at the grocery store and post office.

The park was calling me, but part of me felt silly driving to walk and then driving to run errands when I could combine everything. What to do, what to do, what to do?

I decided to walk to do my errands and get exercise along the way. Yes, I missed the park and it would have been great, but I felt better doing it this way. Now, before you go thinking I'm a fanatic, I often need to drive to a park to get the mental health benefits of walking. But today I was a little more green

Mother's Day Hiking

For Mother's Day this year, I went hiking in Hocking Hills with my family. The weather was beautiful, the trails were not very crowded and it was a lot of fun.

I'm not sure how far we hiked, but there is a lot of up and down. To see the best views, you have to descend into some pretty deep gorges, which is great! However, that means you also have to climb out of some pretty deep gorges.

After finishing a half marathon last weekend and walking 4 miles yesterday, those upward climbs were a little tough! Though Deb and I did a lot of hill workouts, we did not do "stairs" workouts. Most of these trails have stairs on the steeper inclines. I have to admit it, I rested in the middle of several of these.

The trails we did were Cantwell Cliffs, Conkles Hollow and Old Man's Cave. In Cantwell Cliffs, we got turned around and ended up walking much farther than intended.

Conkles Hollow is actually a Nature Preserve. A large portion of this trail is wheelchair accessible (we even saw a person in a wheelchair enjoying the trail). After going too far on the first trail it was nice to take it easy.

Finally we walked Old Man's Cave. This one can be easy or hard, depending on where you enter and where you exit. We decided to avoid climbing out at the 70-stair end of the trail and opted to leave at the end with only 40-some stairs. (Smart choice!)

It was also a great way to get all of us out and moving together!

Air Force Half Marathon Is Walker Friendly

Today I registered for the Air Force Half Marathon September 19. It's been a few years since I've been to this event and I'm pretty excited.

The cool thing is the half marathon is open for 6 hours! Even the slowest walkers I know can do that. In addition, there have been some changes to the half marathon course which make it a little less hilly. Though the overall course is flat, there are these pretty intense hills at the beginning which you used to hit again on return. Not any more!

I was surprised that the half marathon start is an hour after the full marathon. It's great for people like me who like to sleep in a little, but my early bird friends are a little worried about whether it will be hot when we finish.

The full marathon is open for 7 hours, down from 8. But that is still OK.

Here is another cool thing: the race offers women's shirt sizes!!! Woo hoo! The only problem is, I'm not sure what size I should order. (At least at the Big Sur race they let everyone know their shirts ran small.) I'm assuming the shirts are cotton, but what if they aren't? So here I finally have what I want, and I don't know what to do.

I ended up ordering a medium assuming it would be safe if it is a little large, but would not be if it is a little small.

The cost is $50 until June 1, so I would register early. Check out the web site for more information http://www.usafmarathon.com/

First After-Race Walk -- Feeling Good

Today members of the Buckeye Striders met at 8 a.m. for our weekly group walk. It felt good to sleep in today! Deb has had us doing our long training walks as early at 6:45 the last couple of weeks.

We met at Tuttle Park, which is not my favorite park, but it was beautiful this morning. The bike trail here follows the river and rounds some beautiful wetlands. Everything was very green today.

We walked straight out for about 20 min., until the bike trail kind of ends in a neighborhood. We then turned around, went past the starting point for about 10 min., and returned to our starting point.

Though we had not intended to walk hard today, and we all felt a little rusty, I picked up speed as we went. At the end I felt pretty good! Worked a lot of the kinks out.

Now after a week of being hungry all the time and eating whatever I want and limited walking, I'll go back to my somewhat typical weekly workouts. And I'll replace the hill workouts of the last few weeks with speed workouts.

A week after the Flying Pig half marathon, I'm feeling pretty good!

Cooking Goetta takes Skill

Discovered today that I cannot cook goetta.

Normally, my husband cooks it. He is from Cincinnati and introduced me to goetta more than 25 years ago. But when I got back from my morning walk, he was not out of bed yet and I was very hungry for goetta. (In my defense, I made slow-cooking oatmeal, too. Very healthy!) I went out of my way last weekend to pick it up on the way home from Cinci, I really wanted to eat some. I attempted to cook it myself.

I sliced it, put it on a hot griddle and waited for it to get crisp. I know you have to wait until it is crispy before it is flipped. My mistake was that I let it get too crisp on both sides, seriously overcooking it.

Eating it was not very satisfying because there is not much flavor when it is cooked that long. Luckily, my husband awoke, made a second batch and showed me the error of my ways. Slice it thicker -- don't let it get nearly as crisp.

Delicious!

http://www.goetta.com/splash.shtml

Race Photos

Most people who do a lot of races have seen their fair share of unflattering or funny race photos. You're making a funny face, you have bad racing form, there are too many other people in the shot... There's one race where my buddy Chris, who was with me the entire race, wasn't in a single photo, though his left arm was in a couple photos of me.

I don't often buy race photos, partly because I do a lot of races, partly because I don't photograph well in races. (The Country Music Marathon photo posted on this blog is an exception.) But I decided I wanted a nice finish line photo at this year's Flying Pig.

As I raced down that final straightaway to the cheers of thousands, I actually wove in and out of people and planned where to be in the street so that no one would be in front of me for the photo.

A few feet away from the finish line I put on my best smile and tried to look like a racewalker when two people came up along my right side and jumped in front of me!

I was pretty stunned at the time and irritated, though now I can laugh. I just assumed that they had ruined the photo. (I'm in the green shirt.)

The race photos are online today. In them you can see those two people come up beside me and jump in front. To add to the bad photo, there is a woman at the bottom pushing a wheelchair in front of the finish line as I crossed. Though the people didn't block me entirely, combining that with the wheelchair, I'm not buying a photo. Besides, in at least one of the photos you can see me sneering at those people. Not my best look! http://www.runphotos.com/browse.cfm?race_id=157&bib_number=13540&searchword=&subFind=Find+Photos

As for a good finish line photo, I'll try again at the Air Force Marathon in September.

Photo copyright TSC Graphics, 2009.

13 Reasons to do the Flying Pig

13. Cincinnati is not as hilly as you think.
12. This race makes the color pink cool.
11. The pasta party the night before the race was nicely done. All you can eat pasta, in a tent on Fountain Square and the band was good.
10. The Reds never have a home game during the marathon. (If you have ever done the Cleveland Marathon, you will understand why this is an issue.)
9. At the very back of the starting line, where all of the walkers were lined up, there were a TON of port-a-johns with NO LINES!
8. The climb to the top of Eden Park is worth every step! The view is beautiful and Elvis will serenade you.
7. The finishers' medals are always cute.
6. You get to cross a bridge over the Ohio River and into Kentucky, then you come back on another bridge near Paul Brown Stadium. The view of the city is fantastic!
5. The souvenir shirts are the cutest of any race I know -- cute designs and creative puns. (I'll Run a Marathon when Pigs Fly!)
4. The water stops are the best. Stops are manned by church groups, high school football and track teams, and all kinds of other groups. They cheer loudly, even for walkers, and the themes are fun. There are also crowds of cheering fans throughout the race!
3. The goodie bag includes the best stuff. Just for entering you get a race shirt, great poster printed on heavy paper in a box (doesn't get crushed), gym bags or totes and more. Full marathoners get technical shirts, half marathoners get cotton. Lots of great freebies in the Expo.
2. The entire city gets into the spirit of the race. People everywhere wear pig snouts and wings. The girls in puffy pig costumes at the finish line are there every year and are VERY cute.

And the number 1 reason why you should enter the Cincinnati Flying Pig is:
IT'S FUN!

Next year's race is May 2! Checkout the race web site: http://www.flyingpigmarathon.com/

A Good Day at the Pig!

Today was the Cincinnati Flying Pig Marathon and it was great! A group of 9 members of the Buckeye Striders walking club entered the half.

Though on Saturday night we were worried about rain and cold, the temps were in the low 50s at the start this morning with light sprinkles. Luckily it never rained harder!

We went to the very end of the starting line and it took only 9 min to reach the start. What was surprising was the huge number of runners who passed us after the start. Where did they come from? How did they get behind us?

As is typical of a race with over 20,000 entrants, it can take awhile to get going. We tried to maintain a 15-min mile, but because we missed the first mile marker, I'm not sure how fast we were. We wove in and out of many people and tried not to get run over by runners. At the second mile marker, we were at 31:16, much slower than we anticipated. We hovered around 15-min miles for a couple of miles then slowed dramatically to 15:25 up the Eden Park hill. Our hill training definitely paid off! This hill and the entire course was much easier than we remembered from the last time we did this race.

At the top of the hill was Elvis, which made the climb totally worthwhile. He touched my hand!

The entire race had great temps. We encountered occasional sprinkles and no real wind. It was very nice racing weather. I kept taking my jacket off and putting it back on. We were very lucky the sun didn't come out. If it had, the steam from the rain would have been unbearable!

At mile 12 we went our fastest at 13:44! I tried to get Deb to keep it up, but she was unable, so I attempted to zoom off ahead of her. Ha! I did the last full mile in 14:02 and she was just a few seconds behind me. So much for zooming ahead.

We went through the food line (plenty of food) and had our picture taken. The majority of our friends were waiting right there for us! It took a while to find the family reunion area, but none of the faster members of our group were waiting. Apparently, they couldn't find the area, looked for us for a while then went back to the hotel. The rest of us walked around the after-party for a little while, got a massage (which took too long), and then headed back to the hotel.

It was a good day and a good race!

My official finish time was 3:13:59, which is as fast as I was 5-6 years ago. We averaged a 14:48 mile! I think I'm about ready to break the 3-hour half marathon barrier!

Time per Mile
We missed a couple of mile markers, but here are our times from my watch, which may be a little different from the official time:
Miles 1-2 31:16
Mile 3 15:05
Mile 4 15:05
Miles 5-6 29:01
Mile 7 15:25
Mile 8 15:08
Mile 9 14:31
Mile 10 14:44
Mile 11 14:32
Mile 12 13:44
Mile 13 14:02
Mile 0.1 1:31


Previous Half Marathon Finish Times
2003 Air Force Marathon 3:13:45
2004 Capital City Half Marathon 3:10:28

Another Reason not to Take Diet Pills

We've all seen the ads for Hydroxycut in the back of health and fitness magazines. (Well, all of them except WALK! Magazine. Not a moral comment, just an observation.) All you have to do is take the pills and you will end up with a great body, minimal fat and abs that are cut! I love the photos of the morbidly obese women who, after taking the pills, wear string bikinis with no extra skin and no stretch marks.

If it were possible to get a great body by taking a pill, EVERYONE would would have a great body!

Now, after 7 years on the market, there have been 23 claims of adverse side affects from Hydroxycut products. These 23 people had liver injuries ranging from jaundice to death. One person required a liver transplant. Now many of the Hydroxycut products have been voluntarily recalled by the manufacturer.

Statistically, 23 serious injuries out of the millions of people who have taken Hydroxycut over 7 years seems insignificant. Still, is it worth it? Is it really worth the possibility of losing your liver to be thinner a little quicker?

Most of us know that the healthiest way to lose weight and keep it off is through diet and exercise. When you burn more calories than you eat, you will lose weight. If you exercise and build muscle, your body will burn more calories -- even at rest. You didn't gain the extra pounds overnight, you can't lose it overnight.
__________________________

For more information on Hydroxycut:
http://www.webmd.com/diet/news/20090501/hydroxycut-recall-due-to-liver-injuries

Swine Flu and the Flying Pig

MAY 1 UPDATE
SWINE FLU MAY BE LESS POTENT THAN EXPECTED: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/med_swine_flu

___________

Do you remember the Swine Flu outbreak of 1976? I vaguely do. Still it was surprising to read online that more people died from the rushed vaccine than from the actual illness.

To put current events into perspective, annually an average of 36,000 people in the U.S. die from a typical influenza season. (Check out http://www.sciencebasedmedicine.org/?p=320 for more information.) The last Swine Flu outbreak didn't come anywhere near that number of deaths. In fact, I'm pretty sure it was fewer than 100 people who died.

Regardless, I'm not being stupid -- I am diligently washing my hands and avoiding people with symptoms.

My biggest concern, which I admit is somewhat selfish, is how this outbreak is going to affect the marathons and half marathons being held this weekend. There are three big races in and around Columbus and I know at least one person entered in each -- Capital City Half, Cincinnati Flying Pig and Indy Mini Marathon.

I'm assuming/hoping that anyone who has anything remotely close to a flu symptom will stay home. You can't do a long-distance event with the flu! Still, there are always people who will go to an expo or stand in crowds cheering on their friends even if they aren't feeling well. Maybe with the added publicity, sick people will be more inclined to stay home.

On the local news they reported that a couple of ways to prevent getting the illness include keeping active and eating healthy foods. The typical marathoner/half marathoner does that -- especially close to race date.

So, let's all wash our hands, eat healthy foods and keep active.

Here's hoping that the outbreak dies down quickly, few people are infected and that it doesn't affect our races!

____________

For many people influenza is like being pushed off a cliff. Neither the push (the flu) nor the fall (underlying condition) kills you.

It is the sudden stop.

(Quoted from: http://www.sciencebasedmedicine.org/?p=320)

Not Much to Add

I did my 30 min today. I didn't walk very hard and it felt good. My legs feel heavy, but that can be expected -- this is our taper week!

I hate the uncomfortableness of having heavy legs, but I'll get over it. Once I'm done playing online, and put my laptop away, it will help me get over the uncomfortable feeling. I don't know why my laptop does it, but it does.

The only bad thing about going to Cinci is, I love Izzy's. Izzy's is not something I can eat the day before a big race. Darn!

OK, let's keep walking!

I Think I'm Ready

I bought Cran Razz Clif Shot Bloks today.

My clothes have been washed and I know which shoes I will wear. I have a couple clothes options in case the weather changes and a throw-away sweatshirt lined up. Deb has made the hotel reservations and the travel plans.

Today I received my bib number via e-mail: 13540. You can track me throughout the race at: http://tracking.theendresultco.com/2009/flyingpig/index.php. That is so cool!

I got in my 30-min walk tonight. Tapering is great!

I also know where I'll be buying goetta to bring back with me.

I think I'm ready! (OK, I keep forgetting to make a reservation for the pasta dinner, but otherwise, I'm ready.)

The Importance of Race medals

As I removed the "stack" of race medals hanging over the corner of my dresser mirror, they clanged together like wind chimes. I guess I've never picked them all off at one time before, because I was surprised at the pretty sound.

I laid them out on the bed in chronological order. My favorite is the 2000 Air Force Marathon medal from my first (of only two) full marathon. It's large and pretty heavy. I remember it being a little uncomfortable to wear for very long after the race because of the weight. I looked at the detail and I still think it is a very cool medal. As I looked at the medals, it dawned on me that the quality DOES affect my perception of a race.

Many of us say we don't do a race just for the medal. Others say if races did not give medals, they would still do them. However, how I feel about a race after the fact is often colored by the quality of the medal.

After just about every race I've entered, the finishers stand around talking about the event in general and we invariably discuss the medal hanging around our necks. One race I did several years ago, the medal was so thin and ugly, we all laughed! The race also ran out of medals and several of us said we didn't even care. Basically, the finishers felt the race was being cheap and did not care about the people in the race. I still laugh every time I see that medal. (Yes, I laughed today.)

When we finished Big Sur last year, the medals hung from a leather thong and looked as if they were made from clay. We all thought they were very cool. Part of the positive experience of that particular race is the fact it had a unique medal which fit the feeling we had of the race. The race itself was cool.

A few races I've entered even make their medals into collector items, changing the design enough that you really want to have more than one. The Fox Cities Marathon in Appleton, Wi and the U.S. Air Force Marathon both do that. (I'm sure there are many others, those two I know about firsthand.) Air Force features a different military airplane/jet each year that is the focus of the shirt and medal.

OK, so I don't decide whether to do a race strictly because of the medal. If I did, I probably would have done Little Rock a long time ago! But how I talk about the race afterward, my positive or negative feelings toward it always include the quality of that after-race reward. And I admit, I have entered a couple races more than once because the medal was great. Case in point is the Flying Pig -- not only was the race great and the volunteers fantastic, the medal is pretty darn cute. It added to my reasons for doing it again this year.

Now if you were a race director, wouldn't it be worth it to spend a little extra on medals and have your finishers leave with an even more positive attitude toward your event?
_________________

Part of the reason I even began thinking about race medals is because of a conversation some Buckeye Striders had recently about how to count if you've done a race in every state. One walker was deciding whether the Flying Pig would count for Kentucky because it crosses the river into Kentucky for a few miles. She then mentioned that the race she is doing in Vermont might not give out medals and she considering counting only races that give medals.

My personal opinion is, if the race is promoted as being in a specific state, then it counts. For example the State to State would count for Ohio and Indiana. But, the Flying Pig is promoted as an Ohio race, so I would count it as just Ohio. And whether the race gives out medals or not, if you did the race, it counts. (Though it would be more cool to have a medal from each state.)

Playaway Audiobook Update

I've picked up a couple more Playaway audiobooks since I did my product review. I'm not as sold on them as I was back then. Lately I've been unhappy with the device's performance.

As I mentioned in my initial review, the sound quality is not the best. With the last two items I listened to, the buttons did not work well. One would not allow me to reverse or fast forward, the buttons also did weird things when I put the player in my pocket. The one I have now doesn't save where I stop. It's annoying to try to pick up where you left off only to have to repeat a couple chapters of the story.

Based on this recent experience, I'm not sure how often I will listen to Playaway books. Maybe it will be OK if I stick to the most recent releases before the buttons get worn out.

Warm 8 Miles Today

After how cold it has been, I'm not going to complain about it being too hot today when it was in the 60s. At the same time, the temps felt much warmer than it really was because we are not acclimated. The heat also made me worry about what the weather will be like next week. Doing a half marathon when it is suddenly warmer than usual can be tough.

Today we did 8 miles starting at 7 a.m. It is our last long distance before the half next week. The cool thing is, 8 miles was 3 miles shorter than we walked last week.

We did the first mile in about 14:30, the rest were closer to 15:00 or 15:07. I had hoped we would stay closer to 14:50. Still we did 7.8 miles in 1:57:41 and used the last 0.2 miles as a cool down. This gives us an average pace of 15:05, slower than I'd like to be. I'm confident we will be faster next week.

OK, now I have to rethink what I'm going to wear next week. I had not planned to wear a WALK! Magazine shirt because the magazine folded, but at the same time, they are my favorite shirts.

OK, we continue to taper and should have a nice easy week!

Last Intense Hill Workout Before the Pig

We did our regular weekly hill workout today! After all of those days of rain this week, it was a treat to be able to walk in sunshine.

We felt pretty good. I've said it before, but it's true -- we can feel the difference in our strength by doing hills. Though Cincinnati is pretty hilly, I'm really only concerned about Eden Park. I've trained harder this year than the last time I did the Pig, so I should be fine.

I also keep thinking about when we did Big Sur. Everyone warned us about Hurricane Point, but the worst part of the race was the continuous hills later on.

We think we'll do a light hill workout next week, but if the weather doesn't cooperate we can skip it. We are tapering after all!

I know we'll be fine in Cinci as long as it isn't too hot that day. Maybe we'll even PR.

Rainbows

Did a quick walk through the neighborhood tonight with my son. I had planned to get in the whole 3 miles, but I'm really tight on time.

While we were out, it started to sprinkle with the sun shining and the most beautiful rainbow appeared! The colors were very bright and the rainbow reached across the sky in a complet half circle. It was beautiful!

It was a great way to end a dreary, rainy Monday. I'm ready -- bring on Tuesday!

Update Coming

I'll have an update about WALK! Magazine (folded), the new WALK! Newsletter and everything else soon. I've just been unable to think clearly enough today to write a good posting. At the same time, I'm still getting many questions about the magazine and the future newsletter.

In the meantime, if you have any questions, please send an e-mail to me at admin at walk-magazine.com.

Got My Mileage In

Boy, it was chilly today! I thought it would warm up pretty early, so I decided to wear shorts. Not the right decision. It took almost 2 hours before I warmed up!

We walked on a bike trail in Westerville for 5.5 miles (1.25 hrs) out, turned around and came back.

It was a very pretty trail and it was nice to do an out and back in such a nice location. It was rainy this week and we were lucky it wasn't today.

Other than my wearing shorts, the only other problem I had was I ran out of Clif Shot Bloks and was unable to buy more before this morning's mileage. I ended up eating a Promax (small) around mile 8 instead. It was better than nothing. I'll have to buy some Shot Bloks tomorrow to be sure I have what I need between now and the half marathon.

I felt great after the walk, though I felt a little stiff later on. I'm really looking forward to tapering and I can't wait to head to Cinci for the Pig!

11 Miles in the Morning...

Are you ready? We are heading out really early -- about 6:45 start, which means I have to be up before six to get there on time. Whew!

I guess it shows how much I enjoy walking with my walking club that I'm willing to get up that early just to walk with them!

Flying Pig or bust!

Only 16 Days to the Pig!

So, of course, we did hills. We did just 5 reps of our weekly "up a hill down the other" side repeat routine.

I was a little more tired than usual. I think part of it was I had too much Easter candy earlier today, and I just didn't feel right.

Still, it was a good workout.

Our next group workout is at 6:45 Saturday morning when we do 11 miles. Elaine is concerned that there are no hills on the planned route, but that is why we do hills during the week.

I am really getting excited!

Are Your Favorite 'Natural' Foods What you Think?

Just found out my favorite granola bars, the crunchy Kashi brand bars, are made by Kellogg's! It definitely changes my perception of the brand. Now I'm wondering about the quality. Did Kellogg's change them at all? Are the ingredients still natural? (What about the Kashi family?)

Check out some of your favorite "natural" brands here:

http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2009/04/11/Your-Favorite-Natural-Brands-May-Not-Be-What-They-Seem.aspx

I was a Wimp!

It was raining. I didn't feel like getting cold and wet. So today, I carried an umbrella. I know, I know... I'm a wimp! But I did get out and I walked for 3 miles, I just was not very fast.

Food Review -- Panera Greek Salad

I'm picky about restaurant salads. The greens must be green and there must be enough stuff on it to make it worth eating, yet toppings should not all be garbage.

I recently went to Panera for their salmon salad that was a seasonal menu item. Unfortunately, they will not be bringing it back, so I tried the Greek salad. What a disappointment!

The salad had Romaine lettuce, Kalamata olives, red onion, feta, pepperoncini (I love them!), tomatoes and their own Greek salad dressing. That sounds delicious, doesn't it?

On the good side, the ingredients are all quality, the dressing was tasty and the entire salad was only 440 calories. The problem is, besides the Romaine, there was not much of anything on the salad. Four small pieces of tomato, a few sprinkles of Feta, a couple of olives... Basically, it was a bowl of lettuce, which might explain the low calorie count.

Being the "quiet" person I am, I immediately sent an e-mail to Panera explaining my dissatisfaction with the salad. I received a canned e-mail response saying they were sorry for my disappointment and offered a gift card. That was very nice and I accepted the free lunch. Still, they did not admit there was anything wrong with the salad.

Despite my not liking this salad, I like the fact that Panera responded to my complaint very quickly. Yes, I'll go back, but I probably won't order a salad.

10 Miles

The 10 miles we walked today would have been much easier if I had slept well last night. For some reason, I kept having disturbing dreams that revolved around the movie we watched last night which caused me to wake and toss and turn.

Still, I was at the park at 7 a.m. to meet the Buckeye Striders to get in our training miles.

The first 2 miles were rough. I felt too tired to walk that far. But the more we walked the better I felt. The hills at Sharon Woods didn't even bother me! (Our hill workouts are working for us!)

We averaged a 15 min mile, which is usually on the slow side for us. But all of us were feeling the need to emphasize the "slow" part of the long slow distance this weekend.

After a good long stretch and a cup of coffee with breakfast after we finished, I've felt pretty good all day. I did end up standing in the kitchen a lot today pre-cooking some stuff for tomorrow's dinner, and that has made me a little tired, but there is no pain.

Next week we do 11 miles, then we taper until the Pig!

Hills Again!

We did five reps -- up the hill, down the other side, then up that hill and back to where we started. We could tell we are getting stronger. Today's reps were easy until the middle of the third rep.

I wish we had done hills before Big Sur! I feel fantastic!

I'm Not Obsessed

Seriously, I'm not obsessed with getting races to offer women's sizes -- I just want race garments that fit.

If the shirts or jackets offered are a brand name and a quality product, the men's small usually fits me. I get frustrated when you do all of the training, pay the money for the race, you finish the race, and yet you can't wear the shirt or jacket.

One New Year's Day race gave out a shirt that was an unusual color (not white) and I was pretty excited to wear it. The sleeves were too short for my arms, and yet the arm holes were so huge, the sleeves were like bat wings. And of course I always bring up the fleece jacket that was so huge my son who plays HS football wears it.

I admit it, I like the fact that more races are recognizing that more women than men enter their events. And sometimes I wonder what would happen if a race that attracts 70% women did not have any men's sizes.

But seriously, I'm not obsessed, I just want shirts that fit. And if it is a woman's size, all the better.

Races Offering Women's Shirts

I can't figure out a couple of things: 1) Why, when races only gave out cotton T-shirts, did the shirts fit me? 2) When the majority of people who enter races is female, why do races only offer men's garments? (One race I'm aware of has over 70% female participants.) 3) Why do men's technical shirts run so much larger than the old-fashioned cotton?

The new trend is to call the technical shirts "unisex," but basically that just means they are men's shirts.

But some race directors are getting the hint! There are a couple of races that are starting to offer women's sizes in race shirts!

The Capital City Half Marathon in Columbus, OH this May now offers women's shirts. This is a John Bingham race, and from what I can gather, this is the first year for women's sizes. The breakdown of entrants averages 60% female.

Other races offering women's sizes:
- The Columbus Marathon has offered technical shirts in women's sizes for several years.
- The Nike Women's Marathon, CA.
- The Leading Ladies Marathon, SD.
- I assume the MORE Marathon, NYC, does, too.

Anyone know of other races offering women's shirts? Let's get the word out!

Training in April Sleet

Yes, I ended up doing a couple of miles in today's sleet. It felt a lot colder than it actually was because it has been warm lately. Because of that, I wore my winter coat and heavy shoes and walked to the library instead of doing "real" miles.

My original plan was to just reach the library, return books and head back home for 2 miles. I warmed up pretty well once I got to the library and the wind had reduced, so I decided to do one lap around the park for a total of 3.2 miles. It's not the 4 miles scheduled, but it was better than nothing.

What do you do with old race numbers?

When straightening my room earlier today, I found a small stack of about six race numbers that had been sitting on my dresser. I then felt the need to dig out my entire collection of numbers. Most are just in a big 10 X 12 envelope. Some are probably stuck in the bottom of gym bags or scattered around my office. Still, I just can't throw them away.

Each number brought back memories of the fun and excitement of that race. The Country Music Marathon Half was great! The Air Force Marathon was the only full marathon I have entered and was where I met my buddy Jim from Memphis. I have quite a few from Race for the Cure. Big Sur had those killer hills! The News and Sentinel Half Marathon in Parkersburg is where I PRd. (Hills and heat?)

On the back of some of them I've written my finish time. (I had intended to do it with each race.) Some have places for emergency information and I saw the names and cell phone numbers of the people I entered with.

Because of these happy memories, I'd like to do something with them. I saw online that a woman made a dress out of hers. (Not my style.) I know others frame theirs, though I have too many for that. I could put them in a scrapbook, but I doubt if I will. In the meantime, I'll probably just put them all back in that 10 X 12 envelope until the next time I find some laying around.

So, what do you do with your old race bibs?

Stiff on Saturday

I know I've had a good workout that will improve my walking when I can feel my muscles.

Late in the afternoon Saturday, my legs were feeling heavy as I climbed the stairs. And then at the movie theater last night, I could not sit still for the last half hour of the movie! I really needed to walk around and could NOT get comfortable.

Today, they are feeling a little heavy though not sore at all. I can't wait to tackle hills again this week to see how we've improved.

9 Miles at Franklin Park

I'm not a big fan of walking at Franklin Park. It's in our walking club's rotation for the members who live on that side of town. It's a little over a 1-mile loop, there were puddles after the recent rain, and the construction makes it a little awkward. Plus, I just don't like having to do so many loops for 9 miles.

What I like about walking here is it is easy for the various members of our club to find the group. We had a total of about eight of us coming and going, with only three doing the entire 9 miles.

We started at 7 a.m. just as the sun was coming up. It was pretty chilly when we started, less than 40 degrees, but it was a beautiful morning. The first 2 miles I was stiff, but I eventually warmed up and it felt good. (I did NOT overdress today!)

So, though I do not like having to get out of bed on chilly mornings, this was definitely worth it! It was a beautiful morning walking with good friends, and I feel fantastic!
____________________

Thursday we did hills at Griggs Reservoir. Because six reps was too much last week -- we were sore for a couple of days -- we did just five reps. It felt great! And though I could feel my muscles, they were not sore. We are definitely getting stronger and I know we will be ready for the Flying Pig next month!

Was that a Canvasback?

I was walking around Antrim Lake today when I thought I saw a Canvasback.

At the end of the first of my three laps I looked to my left at the water and saw a beautiful red-headed duck swimming among the green-headed Mallards. Though I grew up knowing how to identify a variety of ducks, I'm sad to say my skills have severely declined since my Dad died and I no longer have anyone quizzing me on a regular basis. And I was walking so "fast," I didn't get a very good look at it other than to see the red head. On the next lap the duck was gone. After consulting some online sites once I got home, I have my doubts about what it was. I do know that if it was a Canvasback it would be pretty special, but it was probably just a red head.

And that is one of the reasons I like to walk at Antrim. You never know what you will see. Sometimes I'll run into the local Team in Training group, today it was a group from the Army (reserves maybe?). There are often adult softball games, little kids playing soccer and tennis players.

There are lots of walkers, runners and bikers -- unless there is the threat of rain, like today. (It was less crowded today.) When the dog walkers are behaved, like today, I don't mind the dogs. In fact, I enjoy watching the dogs swim, as long as they don't shake water on me.

And the change of seasons is great here! When you come here often, you see a lot of subtle season changes. For example, today I observed tons of buds on everything and the air smelled like spring. In the fall, it is fun to watch the leaves change just a little bit every day. And winter and summer are just different every day with the temperature swings we have in Ohio.

There are a couple of bad things about Antrim. 1) Parking is limited. 3) Cars have been broken into lately. 2) When there are not many people, it isn't especially safe for women. You really need to watch your surroundings and keep an eye out for creeps.

Despite the negatives, I'm glad I have this little lake in the city that makes it feel as if I've gone somewhere special to walk.

___________

Today's walk was 3.6 miles. I parked close to the path for a change so I could get to the car quickly if the rain came down hard. And because of the threat of rain, I was WAY over dressed. Ended up that it sprinkled on and off, but that was it. My long pants and water resistant jacket were unnecessary. Yet, I got too hot -- again.

I Need to Learn to Work my Watch

I own more than 15 watches.

One is a sturdy Timex with a second hand that my Grandma wore when she was a nurse. Among the others are a couple cheap cute watches in bright colors to go with outfits, a couple nice dressy watches, and several sport watches.

My favorite sport watch (another Timex) is glitchy right now, so I've been wearing the Nike watch that is harder to use. Part of the problem is that I have several sport watches and they each work just a little differently. The other problem is, when I wear my contacts I cannot read the tiny print on the face of the watch. I think this is the bigger problem.

Today we did two loops at Sharon Woods, which is 3.8 miles per loop. There are mile markers which is great for the "I must measure everything" part of my personality, and there is a paint mark on the asphalt that shows when you've gone 4 miles. The problem is, I keep hitting the wrong buttons on the watch so I end up stopping the chrono totally rather than just hitting the lap timer. Then when we are finished, I forget how to stop the chrono and save the workout.

We ended up doing 7.8 miles timed (I think.) and the last .2 from the paint mark back to the start as a cool down. It took about 1:57 to do 7.8 miles. According to the online pace calculator, that is a 15-min mile. I was surprised because we started out too fast for a "long slow day". We did a couple miles at about 14:30 and 14:40, but then we had a couple others over 15. I guess it averaged out.

Though I thought we were faster, I'm not disappointed. We had hoped to stay between 14:30 and 15 per mile today, and we were close. Besides, it was beautiful out there and the people I walked with were fun. It was a great start to the day.
_____________________________

While writing this blog posting I finally found instructions to this watch on nike.com, and will try to figure out how to work the watch for next week.

Walking Feels Good

I've been sore since the hill workout on Tuesday. It's a really "good" sore when you know you've pushed your muscles just enough. It actually feels kinda good.

Tonight I did an hour walk. It felt great and my muscles feel more relaxed. I should have walked yesterday, but didn't because of rain. (I know, poor excuse.) I think the stiffness would have gone away a little quicker if I had walked, but instead I enjoyed feeling a "good" sore. The funny thing is, I think I'll miss it when the pain is gone tomorrow.

Hills, Hills, Hills

Instead of our typical midweek mileage, we did hills today. There are not a lot of hills in Central Ohio, so we have to work hard just to find one for hill training. But by Griggs Reservoir, if you head toward the Frisbee Golf course, there is a steep incline and a steep decline toward the course. In this part of Ohio these steep inclines pass for hills.

We walked half a mile to the "hill". We then went up the incline and down the other side, then turned around to go back up the steeper incline and down to where we started. We did 6 repeats! Unfortunately, we then had to walk the half mile back to our cars. (Who thought the warm up and cool down were a good idea?) We walked for longer than our usual 45-60 min. and it was intense.

I am beat and I know I will feel the after effects tomorrow.

I'm a Poser

I'm a poser!

At least I felt like a poser today. Let me explain.

I needed to get in 4 miles today. I also needed to return library books. So my plan was to walk the 1 mile to the library, return the books, do two laps around the park and walk home. Because I would not be racewalking, I decided to wear heavy shoes, jeans and a sweatshirt.

As I walked around the park, I encountered a couple racewalkers heading toward me. They had great form and were moving fast. Though I was excited to see racewalkers, I felt like a … fitness walker! Not only was I wearing the wrong shoes (I couldn't flex my feet) but honestly, who racewalks in jeans. The last thing I looked like was a “racewalker.” I didn't say anything to the fast walking women because of my appearance. There's no way they would believe I was anything more than what I looked like.

But, if I see them there in the future, and I'm in form, I’ll definitely say “hi.”

Pre-Loaded Audiobooks at Library

I'm a big fan of Audiobooks. I don't have as much time to read for fun as I would like, and Audiobooks allow me to multi-task. I especially enjoy these books while walking.

Usually I download books in an MP3 format to my MP3 player, or will play CDs in my car. I have nearly exhausted the CD collection at my local library and the downloadable books from the Mid-Ohio Library Digital Initiative. (BTW: Who thought that the acronym MOLDI was a good idea?)

Now my local library also carries Playaway books -- self-playing digital Audiobooks. According to the Playaway web site, these lightweight players can hold up to 80 hours of music or other digital files.

The player is a little larger than my MP3 player, but it is light and can easily fit in a pocket or be attached to a lanyard. They take a single AAA battery. Of the books I've checked out, only one needed to have the battery replaced before I could enjoy the book. There is a universal headphone jack and you will need to provide your own headphones.

The instructions are pretty easy to follow and I have had no difficulty figuring out how to use the devices. The collection is also growing, so there are several good titles to choose from.

Though I like the convenience of these players, I find the sound quality is not the best. Many narrators sound as if they have a pronounced lisp. Even using the graphic equalizer button, there is a limit to how good the quality can get. The files I download from MOLDI are of a much higher quality.

I found I sometimes cannot get the device loud enough to hear the book over heavy traffic noises, but that might be my headphones.

Some of the titles I've enjoyed include "You: On a Walk," by Mehmet Oz and Michael F. Roizen; Stephen King's "The Gingerbread Girl"; and a collection of King's short stories "Just After Sunset."

If you are interested in trying Audiobooks but you aren't sure if you should invest in an MP3 player or don't want to carry a CD-player around, this is a great option. But because of the sound quality, if any of these books are also available in MP3 or on CD, I'll definitely do that first.

What a Difference...

The members of the Buckeye Striders entered in half marathons this Spring met 45 min earlier than the rest of the members to fit in our extra miles. (We needed 7 today.)

Deb set the pace, which was pretty quick. We walked straight out on the bike trail for 25 min., then turned around to meet the others who were starting at about 8 a.m. We turned around and went straight out for another 30 min., but it took only 28 for us to return.

Because of where we started, it wasn't accurate to use the mile markers on the trail. And because the pace seemed fast, using our ballpark of a 15-min mile didn't work either. Luckily, one of the walkers had GPS and it indicated we had actually walked 7.5 miles! The online pace calculator I use says we averaged 14:24 per mile!

Not bad considering Thursday I had trouble maintaining a 15-min mile! What a difference a couple of days can have on your pace! I'm sure resting Friday helped, too.

Keeping Training on Track

Today Deb and I met for our 3-mile training walk. The Scioto River seemed a little small after walking beside the Mississippi River for three days. Still the sun was shining, temps were in the mid-50s and it was a beautiful day.

Because of the huge number of blisters I've been getting lately, I didn't wear the salmon-colored NB shoes. Instead, I wore the Chinese racewalking shoes. These shoes feel like slippers and are great for racewalking.

Our times were:
Mile 1 - 14:33
Mile 2 - 15:05
Mile 3 - 14:40

The reason for the reduction in speed was all me. Deb was ready to keep on going at that first-mile pace. I think because of the extra walking I had this week (airports and around the city), and the fact I don't sleep well in hotels, I was a little more tired than she was. Regardless, I'm glad we are picking up speed.

Dinner with Jaye

When I travel, I often try to meet up with walkers I know: either members of the Walking Team or people I've met at various events.

While in St. Louis earlier this week, I had dinner with Jaye, a member of the Walking Team. I met her in Detroit last Fall with the Team. Though most of us did the Detroit Half Marathon, Jaye was fast enough to do the whole marathon.

It was really fun! We drove through some very interesting parts of St. Louis, and she took me to a great Greek restaurant. (There was even a belly dancer!) We talked about her recent finish of the Little Rock Marathon, our mutual friends, upcoming race, our families, and of course the possibility of doing the St. Louis Marathon next Spring.

Thanks, Jaye! I had a great time! And I hope to see you at the starting line of your local marathon next April.

Basilica of St. Louis

While in St. Louis, I saw a small church where I would cross the street to the Arch. Though I walked past it several times, on my last walk I noticed the doors were open and went inside. I was pleasantly surprised to learn that it was a Catholic church and discovered it was founded in 1770. In fact it was the first Cathedral west of the Mississippi.

Though rebuilt more than once, it was obvious it was an old church. The outside was beautiful stone, the pews were quite a bit different from modern pews and it had a calming feel to it.

This church has more statues than you would expect considering how small the building is. I was especially impressed with St. Joan of Arc, an amazing woman, and St. Theresa, my Mom's favorite saint. There is a candle that will remain lit for the entire Lenten season as a continuous prayer to St. Joseph for the unemployed. I walked around, enjoying the quiet and calm. I admired the statues, even the Infant of Prague (as a kid, the one my parents had creeped me out), and even sat down for a few minutes.

Just being inside felt special. I spent a few minutes thinking about all of the people who have been in that church since 1770. I even wondered if any famous people had sat in the same pew I was in. I don't think I can adequately explain what a positive impact the visit had on me. I am very glad I took the time to go inside.

The above photo can be found on the Basilica's web site: http://www.psichurch.com/churches/140stlouis/history.html

Another 4 Miles+ in St. Louis

My meetings ended much earlier than I had anticipated today, so I was able to get out in the bright sunshine and walk 4 miles! Because of the blisters I had from the previous day's walk (actually, not fully healed from last week walking in dress socks), I decided to skip racewalking and walk in my hiking shoes. Eventually, I ended up walking to the middle of the bridge looking over the Mississippi and watched the water. Very cool!

Because I wasn't racewalking, it was a little harder to know how far I walked in a little over an hour.

Then later tonight a group of us went to a great Italian restaurant for dinner. One of our group said it was only a 15-min walk from the restaurant to the hotel, so we decided to walk back. The only problem is, I decided to wear heels assuming we would NOT walk. Well, it was more than a 20-min walk back, and I was wearing heels with dress socks. I have new blisters under my big toe on each foot. Yes, they hurt. I probably will not have time to get in another 4 miles before my flight home tomorrow, but I'll try. Otherwise, maybe I can fit in a few miles at the airport. Regardless, I will NOT be wearing heels.

(St. Louis photos to come.)

4-Miles Under the St. Louis Arch!

I am in St. Louis for a few days for business meetings. Usually when I'm traveling for this job, it is a full day of meetings with maybe a 1-hour break in the middle. (Working lunches.) Today, for some odd reason, I had a 3-hour gap starting around 1 p.m.! Woo hoo!

I ran to my room (I actually walked very quickly), threw on some workout clothes and went across the street to the park where the St. Louis arch is located. It is a beautiful day and a beautiful location! The sun is shining and it is comfortably warm.

Unfortunately, I walked from one end of the park to the other pretty quickly. I needed 4 miles and I've been averaging about a 15-min mile the last week or two. As much as I like this location, it was going to get boring. So, I went down some huge stairs to the Mississippi River and walked on the sidewalk beside the river. Not nearly as pretty, but it was VERY cool to be beside the river and watch the barges!

I went north as far as the gambling riverboat, turned south until I reached the end of the sidewalk, ran up and down the stairs a couple of times, did one more loop around the park and called it a day.

I went the wrong way to my hotel and ended up walking nearly all the way around the block and past Busch Stadium, but it was a nice cool down. I had purchased a bottle of water from a vendor by the river, so the added steps were not a big deal.

I'm not sure if I'll be able to get in any miles on Tuesday. My schedule is much tighter. I also have new blisters that are annoying! But at the very least, I'll be able to get in 4 more miles before flying out on Wednesday.

Early Morning Saturday

I don't like to get up in the morning. In fact, I'm fond of saying, "If I have to get up THAT early, there better be Class-V rapids involved." (I love white water rafting!)

That being said, when training for a long-distance race it is easier to fit in longer training walks if you start early in the day.

Deb and I met at about 7:30 this morning to start our 6-miles at a park in Westerville. The rest of the Buckeye Striders were arriving at 8:00 and we wanted to get 2 miles in before they arrived.

It was dark with temps in the low 30s when we started. We walked straight out on the bike trail for 1 mile, then walked back in time to meet the others. When the group gathered, we turned around to walk out 2 more miles and back for our total of 6.

Around mile 4 I noticed how beautiful the day was. The sun was up, the temps were rising (slightly), there was no breeze, the trail was very pretty and I was walking with friends! I was very happy I had crawled out of my nice warm bed before the sun rose to be here with these people!

Could there be a better way to start a day? Well, OK, only if there are Class-V rapids involved. (But this is a close second.)

Cutting it Short Thursday

Because of a baseball meeting at the high school yesterday, I wasn't able to fit in an entire 3-mile walk. But I did get in 2 miles. Not so bad!

I'm back on schedule for the Flying Pig and I'm ready for 6 miles tomorrow!

An Amazing Person Running Boston

Through my connections with the many walkers I meet, I do "occasionally" meet runners. There is one runner I don't know as well as her fast-walking husband, but from what I do know, she is pretty amazing. Her name is Andrea Applegate.

When I've been around Andrea, she has been up beat and enthusiastic. The positive vibes she projects are contagious. Even through Twitter, she has encouraged me when I've been down about my training.

Andrea is also a member of one of those statistics none of us ever expects to be included in. She was diagnosed with breast cancer while in her 30s. I don't have the exact numbers, but most of us know that the typical woman diagnosed with breast cancer is usually much older. Andrea was diagnosed 9 years ago.

This week Andrea talked frankly about her cancer fight in a local TV interview. She said that she hit the cancer "trifecta:" mastectomies, chemo and radiation. If I hadn't been told, I would never guess that this vibrant, athletic person could have ever been that sick.

Now, in the best shape of her life, Andrea is fulfilling a life-long dream by training to run the Boston Marathon. At the same time, she is raising money on behalf of the Young Survival Coalition. "The YSC provides much needed support, programming and advocacy for young women with breast cancer because, yes, young women DO get breast cancer," she says on her fundraising page.

This blog post does not adequately express the inspiration I feel from Andrea. Despite my writing inadequacies, I'd like to encourage everyone to help support her fundraising efforts. She needs to raise $2,500 to secure a spot in the marathon, but wouldn't it be great if she raised even more? And unlike other charity fundraisers, 100% of the contributions raised go to the YSC!

It's a great cause for an amazing person!

Andrea's fundraising page: http://www.active.com/donate/run4survivalboston09/AndreaApplegate
To learn more about the Young Survival Coalition visit their web site at: http://www.youngsurvival.org/about-ysc/
Follow Andrea on Twitter: @AndreaApplegate

My Favorite New Ice Pack

I'm pretty low tech about a lot of health and fitness stuff. (That's why I like walking!) In fact, when it comes to treating my temperamental knees, I usually just use a bag of frozen peas.

Recently I purchased an ice pack aptly called WRAPZ. The reusable ice pack goes into a purple fabric wrap that can be attached to the knee with elastic straps and Velcro.

What a great idea! I don't like ice packs that require you to sit still or prop your leg to keep the ice on. With the WRAPZ, not only can I sit however I want, I can even get up and walk around!

There is a strap at both the top and the bottom of the pouch that wrap in opposite directions across the top of the pack to keep it attached securely. The elastic also keeps the pack at just the right compression. The Velcro is strong enough to hold everything in place, even when moving.

It takes about 2 hours for the ice pack to freeze all the way through. That seems like a long time when I forgot to put it back in the freezer. But once it was frozen, I was able to ice each knee a couple of times for 15 min. each before it was too thawed.

Though I don't ever use heat on my knees, this pack can be used hot or cold.

For more info, go to www.wrapz.biz. I bought mine at CVS, but I don't recall the price.

Time to ice my knees!

Warm Day in Columbus

What a beautiful early evening for a 3-mile walk! Temps in the 70s, though it was windy. Again I was overdressed in light leggings and a very lightweight long-sleeved technical shirt. Last night when I packed my gym bag, I thought it would be cooler out today.

I had also forgotten to pack a pair of athletic socks and ended up wearing my dress socks. Can you say "blisters"? Yep! I'm getting a blister on the inside edge of both heels. Good thing we walked just 3 miles.

It was fun to get back to walking with Deb again!

___________________

My knees felt great until I sat down in this desk chair tonight. I wonder if the chair is the wrong height. It always feels as if my knees are more strained in this chair. I'll try lowering it.

I'm not overly worried about the swollen knees. This happens every year in the spring when I increase my training for the first half marathon of the year. As the muscles around my knee strengthen, it will go away.

In the meantime, I need to get out either my icepack or the frozen peas.

3 Miles Easy

To get in my 3-mile walk today, I again head off to the library. Because my knees are still a little swollen from Saturday's workout, I wanted to get in the miles without increasing the stress. Walking to the library is always a little less intense than a racewalk workout.

So, I walked the mile to the library, returned some books, did the 1-mile lap around the park, went back inside to pick out new books, and walked home. Though I walked briskly, it was not intense.

The temps were in the 60s and because of the time change, it was light late enough for me to feel comfortable doing the loop around the park.

Though I don't like the Spring time change (I hate having to get up any earlier in the morning than necessary), it is nice that it is light out longer in the evening. I'm much more likely to find the time to get out and walk.

Have You E-mailed WALK! Magazine Recently?

If you have e-mailed WALK! Magazine recently, you might have noticed you did not yet get a response. I'm working on it.

For a variety of reasons, e-mail have not been answered in a timely manner. In addition, I recently, I was unable to even access the admin@walk-magazine.com account!

I now have access to the account, have deleted all SPAM, and have started to answer all of your e-mails. I will get through all of them as quickly as possible.

To Buy Organic or Not

We all like to make the healthiest choices when buying food. Though I know organic foods can be the better choice, I don't always see the benefit compared to spending the extra money. I recently found these two lists on The Daily Green which clears up how we should make our organic-buying decisions.

According to the web site, the following are 10 foods that you do not have to eat organic:
- Asparagas
- Avocado
- Bananas
- Broccoli
- Cabbage
- Kiwi
- Mango
- Onion
- Papaya
- Pineapple

Also from that web site are the 12 foods that you should eat organic:
- Meat
- Milk
- Coffee
- Peaches
- Apples
- Sweet Bell Peppers
- Celery
- Strawberries
- Leafy Greens
- Grapes
- Potatoes
- Tomatoes

Will it affect your buying decisions?

This Morning's Walk

I ended up at Antrim Park about 9:30 this morning. Though slightly overcast, the morning was beautiful! It was about 62 degrees, slight breeze and perfect for walking.

The strange thing is, the park wasn't crowded!

Since training for my first marathon years ago, there are a couple things I have learned about Ohio athletes.
1) Most people do not train outside year round.
2) Runners and walkers go nuts in the Spring and Fall.
3) These same people avoid parks in the Winter and Summer.

I usually try to avoid popular parks like Antrim the first few warm days in the Spring. On days like today, they are usually packed with people who have not been outside since the last warm Fall day. And these people are not just runners, walkers and bikers, they usually include families pushing strollers and tons of people with dogs. (I don't have anything against dogs--we have three. But I prefer other people's dogs to be on leashes within inches of their owners. That doesn't happen a lot in parks.)

So, I was surprised when I arrived this morning and found a parking spot right away. I did three laps around the lake and rarely had to pass anyone. There was only one unleashed dog. There were a few bikes, but not too many.

Not quite sure what to make of it. Did everyone else work out early? Did the clouds that looked like rain scare people off? Were they all at the Arnold Expo?

Regardless, it was a great morning for walking and most of Columbus seems to have missed out.
_______________________

Because of a few bad Winter walks where I literally froze, I have this horrible habit of over-dressing. (I hate being cold.) Though in the 60s, I still took a windbreaker with me. After one lap I was so hot I took the jacket off. After the second lap, I regretted wearing a long-sleeved T-shirt.

I think I'm just going to have to accept that in the Winter I wear too many layers. But I cannot continue to over-dress in the Spring. Somehow, I have to deal with this fear of being cold.

Training for the Pig

As I have reported before, my training for the Cincinnati Flying Pig Half Marathon has been a little bit off due to other commitments and the fact there are only 24 hours in a day. In fact, I haven't even looked at a training schedule until later today.

I did 3.6 miles this morning thinking that about 4 miles would be right. Wrong! On one training schedule I should have been up to 8 miles this week! Oh no! The good news, I have plenty of training programs for various difficulties, and a beginner's schedule indicated 6 miles today. Whew! I think with a little bit of tweaking and consistent walking, I should be able to do the Pig no problem. It won't be my fastest half, but I should be OK.

Walks this Week

I keep thinking that just blogging when I walk is pretty boring. (To you the readers, not me.) But here I go again with another walking update.

Wednesday was a beautiful late winter day! It was sunny, temps were in the 50s and Deb and I walked for about 3 miles along the river. We didn't walk too hard, but we were using good racewalking form. Because of other commitments, it has been very difficult to get out walking enough. In fact, it may have been two months since I walked with Deb. Walking with a good friend just makes my day and since we had not seen each other in a while we had PLENTY to talk about!

I didn't get out to "walk" again until today. (I wasn't able to meet with the Buckeye Striders yesterday. Darn!) Weekends get busy and I had errands to run as well as the need to walk. So I reverted to my old habit of walking to the library. Haven't done it in a while and it felt good! I dropped off a bunch of books and picked up some new ones. I tried to hurry, so I have no idea if the new books will even be any good. The only bad part was the wind had picked up and it was in my face for most of the way home. I did bring my gator just in case, and I definitely needed it. It was sunny and much warmer on my way there.

I can't believe I have to keep reminding myself of this. I ALWAYS feel better--mentally and physically--when I'm walking regularly. I don't know what more I can say!
_____________________

I gave up Diet Coke for Lent. I can't believe I did it again considering how hard it was last year! I'm not sure if it is my addiction to the caffeine that is the problem, or just the taste of DC. Other beverages are just not cutting it! The good news is, since I do drink so much of it, and other pops don't do much for me, I should save a ton of money by drinking more water. (I know, I know. I should do it anyway.)