Tuesday's Tip - March 31st

To be fair, it seems that this quote is incorrectly attributed to Abraham Lincoln. Regardless, I think there are lessons to be gleaned - all along the lines of the good old proverb:

“Give a man a fish; you have fed him for today. Teach a man to fish; and you have fed him for a lifetime”"- author unknown.

How to Cure the Hiccups

It's that time of year again - the circumstances in my life force me to get extraordinarily creative when it comes to programming and scheduling workouts. I am currently working 7 days a week, upwards of 12 hours at a time. Due to the (most appreciated) generosity of my employers, I can generally run out to the gym to train or to the park to run. It's quick, but it serves to keep me sane. However, even the best routines can become problematic.

The Hiccup - We're down one employee here in the office for the next few days. While I'm sure I can still run out to the gym without garnering any disapproving looks - I just wouldn't feel right. For one thing, everyone else will still be here plugging away. For another, all my work will still be here waiting for me, PLUS the work I'd generally be handing to the missing employee. So, for all intents and purposes - my workload has increased for the foreseeable future. Work with a specific (and tight) deadline.

The Compromise - No more than one trip out of the office per day.

The Solution -

• :10 - :20 static holds at the top of the pull-up position (potty pull-ups)
• 1 set of push-ups each bathroom trip (10 the first trip, increasing by 1 each additional trip)
• 100 squats and sit-ups (not for time) upon returning home

It's not Fight Gone Bad, Yasso 800s or Max Deadlifts. But it's something. And for now, it will have to do.

Food Find, March 27th

What would you do with 4800 calories?

100 reasons I Run, #95

#95

• Opening up Ultrarunning magazine, reading the race reports and recognizing multiple names in the majority of the Eastern Seaboard race results.

You (and you know who you are) all rock. See you out there soon!

Sexercising Tanorexics

A while back, I was perusing a friend's blog (she's uber funny and snarky, which is probably why I think she's so freaking hilarious). She'd written about exercise, and the amusement to be found when one lets go of the Ipod (accidentally leaving it at home) and just looks around at all the fellow worker-outers.

Good stuff.

Even funnier when a week or so later I come to find out she's referring to MY gym.

Check out the original blog post here, on Kimmy in the City.

A reminder to us all - you never know who's watching (and writing).

Tuesday's Tip, March 24th

"Things that hurt, instruct." - Benjamin Franklin

NYRR Colon Cancer Challenge, 4M

Another weekend, another race recap! Now this is what I'm talking about :)

Yesterday, I ran the annual NYRR Colon Cancer Challenge. I had been registered for the 15k, but opted instead for the 4M race, as I am still not quite 100%. Let me tell you - as much as I love ultra events, there is something to be said for short, sweet and speedy (well, relatively so). I ran it in 35:53, for an 8:58 mm pace. My previous PR at this distance was an 8:11 mm pace, so I was definitely slow. But I kept the entire race very consistent (as always slowing down considerably in the 3rd mile - that 102nd street transverse and then south along the west side gets me every time). While it was far from effortless, it was fun. I definitely had plenty more in me, but I opted not to go all out since I'm not sure right now just how quickly I can recover.

The weather was perfect - crisp and chilly at the start, warming up by the finish. A nice, small turnout for the 4M - no traffic jams, or errant elbows. All in all, it was a great way to start my day. Especially considering that the rest of it was spent at my desk :)

The next race on my schedule is the City Parks Foundation Run for the Parks 4M on April 5th. 10 days from the end of tax season - I'm going to hope to better yesterday's time, but in actuality I'll be lucky if I can string two words together by that point :)