Thoughts on a Freezing 8 Mile Run

Start:   Okay, I'm leaving the house.  I have on cuddleduds under my tights, a longsleeve shirt, jacket, hat with earcovers, and gloves, so I'm good to go.  OMG.  It's freezing.  Literally freezing. Actually, it's several degrees below freezing.  There's still snow on the ground - this is a really bad idea.  No, the sidewalks are clear, so the trail's probably okay.  No excuses.  I'm doing this.

Mile 1:   My lungs are burning.  I can see every breath in the air.  Maybe I should have worn some kind of mouth cover.  Oh look - another runner!  Dude, we're hardcore.  Yes, our mutual waves mean "glad to see I'm not the only one crazy enough to run in this."   Maybe this isn't so bad - I'm actually smiling.

Mile 2:   Oh my.  The pedestrian bridges over the creek are still covered in ice & snow and are potential death traps.   Go slow, go slow, don't break a leg.  Hopefully as it continues to warm up, and as the sun keeps shining, then the next ones will be thawing out.

Mile 3:   My hands are hot.  I think I'm going to take off my gloves.  Oh shit.  Nope, gloves going back on!  My palms are really hot.  Do they make palm-less gloves?  I mean, I know they make fingerless gloves...but my fingers need to be covered - my palms are hot!  I should check into this when I get home.

Mile 4:   Okay, time to turn around, and fuel.  Uh-oh, my gel is practically frozen.  Maybe I should stick it in my bra so my body heat can warm it up a little and it'll be easier to get down.  OH GOD...I think I've given my left boob frostbite!!!  Is that possible?  Soooooo cold.    But, it seems to have worked.  And hooray for freeze-proof water fountains!

Mile 5:   Dogs in winter coats are the cutest thing.  Ever.

Mile 6:   Where did this wind come from?  Did I have a tailwind outbound and not even notice?  I feel like I'm slowing down.  Ooof - the wind makes my face hurt.  Back to wishing I have some kind of face cover.  Why does the outbound leg not feel like it's downhill, but the return path definitely feels like uphill?

Mile 7:   This bridge definitely did not thaw out while I was out.  Go slow, go slow, don't break a leg.

Mile 8:  1 mile left.  I am a total badass for rocking this run.  It feels like it's finally above freezing, but I've warmed up a lot, so maybe that's just in my head.  No, it's definitely gotten warmer.  There's less snow along the path than when I started.  This last mile sucks.

Done:   Home!  Home!  Home!  OMG, now that I've stopped moving, I'm freezing again.  Totally shaking, even inside the house.  I'm making myself hot tea and hopping in a steamy shower.  Yay me!

Be CHEERful: A Follow-Up Post

You may remember my rather tongue-in-cheek post last month titled What To Do When You're NOT Running a Race That All Your Friends Are?.  It was about your options for dealing with FOMO when all your friends are running a race that you're not, which, in this instance, was all my ROTE friends participating in the runDisney Twilight Zone Tower of Terror 10-Miler.  This is just a quick and funny follow-up to that post.

In response to that post, my friend Megan (check out her great running blog here: Elbowglitter) tweeted me the following pic of her cat, Pippin, telling me I needed to convince the cats to cheer with me:

Megan's cat, Pippin, "cheering on" our friends Katie & Kim from afar.

Which, of course, sparked an idea...what if I could come up with some funny signs for the cats that I could then text/tweet to my friends as they were running?  And, what if I could convince others to join me???  That's when another friend, Kim (check out her great running blog here: TriAndTrue) stepped up, volunteered her dog, Flynn, and helped me start planning.  Here's what we came up with:

My cat, Junebug, "cheering."

My cat, Emma, "cheering."

Kim couldn't get Flynn to keep his signs on long enough to snap a picture, so we "doctored" a few old pics of him to send.

Overall, I think we did a pretty good job of virtually cheering!  Kim and I worked out a schedule where we alternated sending our pet cheering pics to our friends throughout the night, and from their responses, I'd say we were a success!

It just goes to show that FOMO can turn into something fun, funny, and helpful.  Even though I wasn't running the race, I still had a good time that night tracking and cheering!

• Have you ever virtually cheered on friends/family when they run out-of-town/state/country?
• Do you take any of your pets along when you are physically there to spectate/cheer a race?

Canine Christmas Canter

Well, Christmas has officially come and gone.  Bad news - it's over, and that stinks.  Good news - I got my scheduled mileage in over the holiday weekend, plus a couple of unanticipated extra miles!  On Friday morning Dad and I woke up early and ran at T.H.P. (I did 8 and he did 10, though he did his last 2 miles with me at "my" pace).

Then, on Saturday afternoon, Dad's running group organized an impromptu "Fruitcake Run" at Herman Park (because you've got to be slightly nutty to run on Christmas Day, right?).  Because I didn't want to slow down the group, I chose to hang back with my mom, brother, and my brother's dog, Ellie.  Ellie and I ran a couple sprints while mom & Rob walked.  After the group returned from a 2 mile run, we all went our separate ways.  On the way home, I was feeling a little guilty for not having run with the group, so I borrowed my dad's running belt and leash, and grabbed Ellie and we did a couple laps around our neighborhood park - definitely a new experience to run with a dog, but we had fun!  Since I had only planned on running on Friday, getting those couple of miles in on Saturday (even though they were slow, easy, miles) really pleased me.

 Friday's run:

• 8 miles; 1:48:00 min; 13:30 min//mi avg

Saturday's run (not including the untimed sprints):

• 1.5 miles; 0:21:02 min; 14:01 min/mi avg

Dog Days of Summer

This morning the newscaster said that we had survived "the dog days of summer" - the hottest, most sultry days of the season - and that the intense heat was most likely over.   Granted we're not in the 100's anymore, but you can count on Dallas being in the 90's well into October - still pretty darn hot!

Speaking of dog days, the highlight of my run most days is going past the city Dog Park.  On the trail, I get to meet playful pups straining at their leashes on the way in, and pooped pooches dragging their heels on the way out.  Meanwhile, dogs of all sizes are frolicking off-leash inside the fenced areas and everyone looks so happy!  You can  just feel the positive energy, and can't help but smile as you jog past.  The doggie antics will even occasionally warrant a giggle - the last thing you'd expect from me while running!

So, with a lasting grin on my face from the memory of seeing a miniature daschund trying to wrangle a frisbee away from a golden retriever, I'm proud to report the following stats:

• 0.7 mi walk
• 2.03 mi run; 27:30min; 13:33min/mi
• Cross Bend Short Loop