Hey all.
In an effort to extend the proverbial olive branch of running, I will be starting to blog on Wednesdays specifically about workouts, nutrition, and all other things running. For post numero uno, here's one of my favorite running workouts, Race yo a*& into shape. Here goes nothing...
Running sucks. It hurts, you sweat, smell kinda funky, miss out on drunken parties because you need to wake up early and run a race or workout, go to bed at 9 pm, and the list goes on and on....BUT there is one awesome part of running- RACING. I love races. Granted, at least 24 hours before the smallest local race I am a hot mess and ready to vomit, I just love getting to a starting and finish line. It is just the best feeling in the world to know that no matter what happens, I ran my butt off and left it all out on the course. Sometimes races don't go as planned, but a crappy race is better than a great run on a treadmill or boring run on a road any day.
One great thing about races is that for the most part, there's a zillion of them to choose from. You can also strategically plan races of various distances to prepare for a goal race. For example, I am planning on making my big race of the year the Harrisburg marathon. In order to meet my goal of qualifying for Boston (3:35 or lower finish time), I am planning races accordingly. This weekend I raced a five mile that was moderately hilly, and I ran the mile splits approximately 1:15 faster than my marathon pace. My next race will be a 10k that will again be about a minute faster than MP (Marathon Pace). I plan on following that with a 5k and long run (15-20 miles) weekend, then a weekend 'off' (AKA lower mileage), a half marathon at 30 seconds per mile faster than MP, a 5k at full speed and long run weekend, and then my last weekend of super long (20+ miles). Getting to marathon time is great, but being well-prepared with shorter and faster, but also longer and slightly faster is key.
Another thing races offer is the chance to try new stuff. A new outfit? Great! New pre-race dinner? Go for it- I always stick with a gigantic vegan burrito, but you do you... New kicks? All you homey. Try new combos of stuff in races you care a little less about. It can make the difference between dealing with the same old, same old, and learning something new about your running and yourself that you may not have known before.
Happy Hump day and stay tuned for more Work out Wednesday posts!
Wednesday, September 23, 2015
Wednesday, May 6, 2015
Runs with dogs
If I were a Native American my name would be "Runs with Dogs" but most likely, "Naps with Dogs". I love my dogs. Does anything else need to be said?
They never talk back. They never cry about putting on shoes. They never empty your purse and put your favorite lipstick in the toilet (this happened this morning and I am still cranky about it).
However, they, and one dog in particular, runs away. Every chance she gets. This morning, I was getting ready to go meet some ladies from my running group for a track workout and guess who decided to give me a track workout in the street in front of my house. Here's me, running down the middle of my quiet suburban street like a screaming crazy person. At this point I think my neighbors roll their eyes and simply watch the comedy from their windows, or else they have learned to turn their hearing aids off because the Magni's are in town.
I think the that the true test of fitness is measured not in how quickly I can run a 5k or around a track but how quickly I can wrangle a small (45 lbs.- that is small for us...) creature who is in the midst of chasing a critter.
Run on friends, and when in doubt let me know and you can borrow the mutt....
They never talk back. They never cry about putting on shoes. They never empty your purse and put your favorite lipstick in the toilet (this happened this morning and I am still cranky about it).
However, they, and one dog in particular, runs away. Every chance she gets. This morning, I was getting ready to go meet some ladies from my running group for a track workout and guess who decided to give me a track workout in the street in front of my house. Here's me, running down the middle of my quiet suburban street like a screaming crazy person. At this point I think my neighbors roll their eyes and simply watch the comedy from their windows, or else they have learned to turn their hearing aids off because the Magni's are in town.
I think the that the true test of fitness is measured not in how quickly I can run a 5k or around a track but how quickly I can wrangle a small (45 lbs.- that is small for us...) creature who is in the midst of chasing a critter.
Run on friends, and when in doubt let me know and you can borrow the mutt....
Tuesday, April 21, 2015
Let's go a 10-k-ing
Well, Hershey 10k has come and gone and there are a few things that I learned.
1. Sign up for a charity race. I did this race for Team in Training and raised a crap load of money along with my TNT teammates. There is nothing more rewarding than knowing that you are running for a reason and what better reason than cancer research. This was absolutely life changing- I actually got to feel like there was a reason to be out running. Not just for some medal that my kid will eventually steal and most likely lose anyway.
2. High five little kids. Us "serious runners" rarely are able to take in the scenery and crowds at a race. We simply go and run as fast as we can until we are about ready to keel over and then finish. Sometimes it is just nice to take the pressure off and enjoy what is going on around you.
3. Don't be a dick and size people up. This is not the first time I have gotten sized up at a starting line. Yes, I typically look like a hot mess- I am short, I never have on a 'team gear', I am slightly green because I might barf at any second...you get the picture- but I am pretty fast for a mom of two who is a little over racing weight and who might look slightly homeless, but guess what? I will beat you or die trying. Don't look at me like I am out of place at the front of the pack. I belong there, jerk.
4. Finally, find tall people and befriend them weather they like it or not. They are not only good for opening above the sink cabinets and killing spiders on the ceiling- they also are very good at breaking the wind.
This was an awesome PR of 40:04 for 10k, but considering the fact that my only other 10k has been run in 90-plus degrees on a physics-defying hilly course, I think it is safe to say this race was a step in the right direction for summer racing. See you soon.....
1. Sign up for a charity race. I did this race for Team in Training and raised a crap load of money along with my TNT teammates. There is nothing more rewarding than knowing that you are running for a reason and what better reason than cancer research. This was absolutely life changing- I actually got to feel like there was a reason to be out running. Not just for some medal that my kid will eventually steal and most likely lose anyway.
2. High five little kids. Us "serious runners" rarely are able to take in the scenery and crowds at a race. We simply go and run as fast as we can until we are about ready to keel over and then finish. Sometimes it is just nice to take the pressure off and enjoy what is going on around you.
3. Don't be a dick and size people up. This is not the first time I have gotten sized up at a starting line. Yes, I typically look like a hot mess- I am short, I never have on a 'team gear', I am slightly green because I might barf at any second...you get the picture- but I am pretty fast for a mom of two who is a little over racing weight and who might look slightly homeless, but guess what? I will beat you or die trying. Don't look at me like I am out of place at the front of the pack. I belong there, jerk.
4. Finally, find tall people and befriend them weather they like it or not. They are not only good for opening above the sink cabinets and killing spiders on the ceiling- they also are very good at breaking the wind.
This was an awesome PR of 40:04 for 10k, but considering the fact that my only other 10k has been run in 90-plus degrees on a physics-defying hilly course, I think it is safe to say this race was a step in the right direction for summer racing. See you soon.....
Wednesday, April 1, 2015
Running 2015
It is hard to believe that another 'race season' is quickly approaching. This year's outlook has the typical questionable outlook of the last few years, but I find that I have been able to take on a new outlook- it is that of compartmentalization. What's this you ask? Sounds smart doesn't it...that's what a degree from America's finest public institution of higher education will get ya' (shout out Millersville U). What I actually mean is that this is the first time, maybe ever, that I have been able to use running as an outlet for my stress and anxiety and not just for a way to get in shape.
The past few years have been absolutely nuts. Little kids, dogs, husband, school, graduating, grad school, now my big girl job hunt. It has been a never-ending cycle of ups and downs, but the thing that has always stayed consistent is my ability to shut off from the world while focusing on plain old running. What a God sent.
Another thing I have found with a renewed focus on running is the ability to absolutely crush runs over and over. After a terrible half marathon of unfocused cluster f-ness, I took some time to re-boot and re-evaluate. I think I had such a bad race is the simple fact that I over thought, which I do all the time in every aspect. Over the past few months I have found myself no longer staring at my GPS watch to track every pace and tenth of a mile, I have used a run to do just that. Run. And it sure as heck is paying off.
My first race back, the Run 4 Luck was a crap fest of a day. Rain, 30 degree temps, a baby that barely let me get 4 hours of continuous sleep the night before. Normally, I would have totally freaked, had a crappy race and allowed myself to dwell on it for months. Thankfully not this year. I was able to start out with a new friend and simply focus on 'being there' and the task at hand, not the other 10,000 things that were going on, and guess what? Taking the outside factors away and focusing on the task at hand actually paid off. Who would have thought? I ended up being the first female and finished in 24:50-ish. Not my best time, but faster than the year before when I barely pulled out a 25 and thought I was going to die doing it.
Maybe there's a new non-obsessive compulsive Brooke on the horizon, might be a long-shot, but let's hope so.
The past few years have been absolutely nuts. Little kids, dogs, husband, school, graduating, grad school, now my big girl job hunt. It has been a never-ending cycle of ups and downs, but the thing that has always stayed consistent is my ability to shut off from the world while focusing on plain old running. What a God sent.
Another thing I have found with a renewed focus on running is the ability to absolutely crush runs over and over. After a terrible half marathon of unfocused cluster f-ness, I took some time to re-boot and re-evaluate. I think I had such a bad race is the simple fact that I over thought, which I do all the time in every aspect. Over the past few months I have found myself no longer staring at my GPS watch to track every pace and tenth of a mile, I have used a run to do just that. Run. And it sure as heck is paying off.
My first race back, the Run 4 Luck was a crap fest of a day. Rain, 30 degree temps, a baby that barely let me get 4 hours of continuous sleep the night before. Normally, I would have totally freaked, had a crappy race and allowed myself to dwell on it for months. Thankfully not this year. I was able to start out with a new friend and simply focus on 'being there' and the task at hand, not the other 10,000 things that were going on, and guess what? Taking the outside factors away and focusing on the task at hand actually paid off. Who would have thought? I ended up being the first female and finished in 24:50-ish. Not my best time, but faster than the year before when I barely pulled out a 25 and thought I was going to die doing it.
Maybe there's a new non-obsessive compulsive Brooke on the horizon, might be a long-shot, but let's hope so.
Tuesday, March 18, 2014
Fast shaming
So, I had a very interesting experience this weekend I want to share. A few weeks ago I decided to finally get it together and race a 4 miler. I have been lifting like a maniac for the first time, and despite being stuck on a treadmill for the past few months, I finally feel like I am starting to get some speed back. Well, the race was a gigantic cluster-f. I felt terrible, and got bumped from second to third female in the last 400m. Walkers totally got in the way of the front runners, and had a shit fit when I gave them the customary "on your left". A group of women actually did the mean girls style "Oh My God! She said 'Runners on left' What a bitch!". Seriously, you are a WALKER. Get out of the way.
I finished with an okay time of 25:08. I get that this is a 6:17 mile pace, and many people would die to be able to run that fast, HOWEVER, it felt terrible, and it was just a poor race in general.
So, my dumb self decides to post my time and place on the page of a certain running group (of women no less) and gets absolutely ripped to shreds. Mind you, this is a group where women post all the time about their accomplishments and get serious accolades for doing things like "running for a whole 5k-no walking", or placing in an age group at a 5k. So, apparently, when I posted a fast time and followed it with the comment that it was an "ugly race, but getting better" that pissed some of them off. I got "you should consider the audience of the group and not post times like that", and "the time that you are complaining about many would love, just saying'". Wow. High school style much? I guess it doesn't matter that I work out super hard, live a clean lifestyle, pay for races, coach, volunteer, etc. I guess I am just a show off and a bia-tch. I like to refer to this conundrum as "fast shaming". We are supposed to praise the 45 minute 5k runner for such a wonderful accomplishment, and the six hour marathoner for "sticking with it", but if you run a fast time, even not as fast as you feel you could have, you shouldn't boast of even speak of it for that matter.
I have certainly learned my lesson. No longer will I put up times in a group of women. They can wallow in their own self-rigeousness and keep congratulating eachother for their "accomplishments".
I'll just post on the pages of my FAST friends.
Keep running.
I finished with an okay time of 25:08. I get that this is a 6:17 mile pace, and many people would die to be able to run that fast, HOWEVER, it felt terrible, and it was just a poor race in general.
So, my dumb self decides to post my time and place on the page of a certain running group (of women no less) and gets absolutely ripped to shreds. Mind you, this is a group where women post all the time about their accomplishments and get serious accolades for doing things like "running for a whole 5k-no walking", or placing in an age group at a 5k. So, apparently, when I posted a fast time and followed it with the comment that it was an "ugly race, but getting better" that pissed some of them off. I got "you should consider the audience of the group and not post times like that", and "the time that you are complaining about many would love, just saying'". Wow. High school style much? I guess it doesn't matter that I work out super hard, live a clean lifestyle, pay for races, coach, volunteer, etc. I guess I am just a show off and a bia-tch. I like to refer to this conundrum as "fast shaming". We are supposed to praise the 45 minute 5k runner for such a wonderful accomplishment, and the six hour marathoner for "sticking with it", but if you run a fast time, even not as fast as you feel you could have, you shouldn't boast of even speak of it for that matter.
I have certainly learned my lesson. No longer will I put up times in a group of women. They can wallow in their own self-rigeousness and keep congratulating eachother for their "accomplishments".
I'll just post on the pages of my FAST friends.
Keep running.
Tuesday, January 14, 2014
Life is not easy
Hello again friends.
As you may or may not have seen, my blog has changed directions a bit from being recipe/vegan based into more of an all around training/advice format. Just trying something new.
Let's take a minute to address reality. At least once a week, I hear someone say, "I'd get in shape if I had the time", or "I really want to..."-but THEY DO NOTHING ABOUT IT. Talk is cheap. I am a mom to a four year old, and a four month old, I work, go to graduate school, volunteer, keep a clean house, cook, and a zillion other things but somehow I still find time to break a sweat almost every day. Everyone is busy, but if you are too busy in your 20's, 30's, and 40's to get your shit together, you might not be around to enjoy your 60's, 70's, and 80's. I'll be the first to admit that there was a time in my life when my priorities were a hot mess, but I decided to take action and make a change.
I am not sure who came up with the mantra, "trust the process", but that is what I do every day. Life is a journey and if you can make a goal and a road-map that you actually follow to get to your goal, the possibilities are endless. By saying that, let's get real. I am 5'3" and no matter how hard I work at it I will never be a pro basketball player, so keep a realistic perspective and make your goals attainable.
While coaching I have tried to instill "positive optimism" in all of my athletes. Visualization of winning a race (or finishing a race) can be extremely helpful. If you believe it, it can happen. Trust in your own abilities and gifts and find the strength to keep moving forward. This is not the time for excuses. Get up off your ass and be the change in your life.
That is all, next week I'll start adding some pretty sweet-ass videos so check it out.
As you may or may not have seen, my blog has changed directions a bit from being recipe/vegan based into more of an all around training/advice format. Just trying something new.
Let's take a minute to address reality. At least once a week, I hear someone say, "I'd get in shape if I had the time", or "I really want to..."-but THEY DO NOTHING ABOUT IT. Talk is cheap. I am a mom to a four year old, and a four month old, I work, go to graduate school, volunteer, keep a clean house, cook, and a zillion other things but somehow I still find time to break a sweat almost every day. Everyone is busy, but if you are too busy in your 20's, 30's, and 40's to get your shit together, you might not be around to enjoy your 60's, 70's, and 80's. I'll be the first to admit that there was a time in my life when my priorities were a hot mess, but I decided to take action and make a change.
I am not sure who came up with the mantra, "trust the process", but that is what I do every day. Life is a journey and if you can make a goal and a road-map that you actually follow to get to your goal, the possibilities are endless. By saying that, let's get real. I am 5'3" and no matter how hard I work at it I will never be a pro basketball player, so keep a realistic perspective and make your goals attainable.
While coaching I have tried to instill "positive optimism" in all of my athletes. Visualization of winning a race (or finishing a race) can be extremely helpful. If you believe it, it can happen. Trust in your own abilities and gifts and find the strength to keep moving forward. This is not the time for excuses. Get up off your ass and be the change in your life.
That is all, next week I'll start adding some pretty sweet-ass videos so check it out.
Tuesday, January 7, 2014
Hello again friends!
Sooo, I took a little hiatus to birth a child and all of that fun stuff, but now I am back and better than ever. Or something like that. For this post I want to address the ever-elusive "New Year's Resolution Monster".
At the beginning of December every year I start to dwell on the fact that another year is waning and I obsess about everything I said I was going to do at the beginning of the year. Typically, I make a dumb resolution like eating better or going to spin class every week, and like most people I give up on that around March-ish. Luckily this past year was completely different.....My goal was to see how much I could do in 2013. And shit, I did a lot.
My husband and I started off the year by finding out we were going to have another rug rat. At first I was totally overwhelmed and wished black death to his man-junk, but eventually I got over that and semi-enjoyed getting gigantic in the midsection and peeing every second.
Next we bought a jeep. This might not seem note-worthy to some people, but it was my last hold out before becoming the suburban-SUV driving-soccer mom.
We actually went on a for-real family vaca to Arizona where we hung out with family, had multiple heart and panic attacks at the Grand Canyon, and I got to ride on a plane with a three year old. All things considered, it was a great trip.
THEN I finally graduated from college and got accepted into grad school.
And we bought a new house. In the burbs. Now I really am THAT mom.
So that was 2013. Any-who, back to my original point....instead of failing at another resolution I am resolving to "GSD" (getting shit done). Please join me and let's make this a year for the books.
Keep truckin friends.
Sooo, I took a little hiatus to birth a child and all of that fun stuff, but now I am back and better than ever. Or something like that. For this post I want to address the ever-elusive "New Year's Resolution Monster".
At the beginning of December every year I start to dwell on the fact that another year is waning and I obsess about everything I said I was going to do at the beginning of the year. Typically, I make a dumb resolution like eating better or going to spin class every week, and like most people I give up on that around March-ish. Luckily this past year was completely different.....My goal was to see how much I could do in 2013. And shit, I did a lot.
My husband and I started off the year by finding out we were going to have another rug rat. At first I was totally overwhelmed and wished black death to his man-junk, but eventually I got over that and semi-enjoyed getting gigantic in the midsection and peeing every second.
Next we bought a jeep. This might not seem note-worthy to some people, but it was my last hold out before becoming the suburban-SUV driving-soccer mom.
We actually went on a for-real family vaca to Arizona where we hung out with family, had multiple heart and panic attacks at the Grand Canyon, and I got to ride on a plane with a three year old. All things considered, it was a great trip.
THEN I finally graduated from college and got accepted into grad school.
And we bought a new house. In the burbs. Now I really am THAT mom.
So that was 2013. Any-who, back to my original point....instead of failing at another resolution I am resolving to "GSD" (getting shit done). Please join me and let's make this a year for the books.
Keep truckin friends.
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