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4-mile Black Lab Run

No, the "Black Lab Run" isn't a race that I ran in this weekend. It's what happened to me today.

I set out for my run this morning and after about a quarter mile, a stray black lab started running along with me. I didn't really mind, and it was good company. He would run up into people's yards and then come back to join me every so often. I kept thinking that he would stop and go home, or get bored and wander off....but, he stayed with me for the entire 4 miles.

When we got home, I got him some fresh water to drink and gave him some food. He was very friendly. The first thing my son said was "Can we keep him?" I said "No, he probably belongs to somebody." So we got out the phone book to call the local Animal Control to come get him, and by time I went back outside, he was gone. Probably off on another run with another passerby. Anyway, it made for an enjoyable run, to have a running partner.

I tweaked my right calf at about the 3 mile mark, enough that I walked most of the last mile....I am not sure what happened, I was running along fine, feeling strong, and then I felt a twinge of pain in my calf that brought me to a halt. It's not a cramp, maybe a strained muscle or something. So, I'm going to give it a good 3 days rest and see how it feels.

I leave you with a picture of my boys' Halloween costumes, a boxer and a tourist.

A Wave From California

New Places

First off, I have been traveling this past week and have had zero time to blog or read anyone elses blogs, so hopefully I can catch up over the weekend. Thanks to Tall Mom for letting me know I won a giveaway on her blog. Woo-hoo. Some hand warmers just in time for winter.

Prior to this week, I have never been west of Colorado. But a business trip to California changed all of that, and I got to spend 4 days in San Diego.

I loved seeing all the palm trees, but I could have done without the crazy traffic.


view from my hotel room...it was too cold to swim. for me anyway

While there, I had a nice 5.5 mile run my first morning there, and another 4 mile run the next day. There was a great path to run near the hotel. It was a bike path between the sidewalk and the street and was wide enough for a golf cart. There was a curb that was 6 inches high and 18 inches wide that separated the bike path from the motorist traffic. That helped give a sense of security having that extra curb there.

the bike path i ran on...it was nice and wide, with curbs on both sides...

California people didn’t seem as friendly as I’d imagined. I mean, the people around the hotel were nice enough, but that’s their job. And my co-workers from California are all nice. But during my runs, I usually try to wave to people I pass, and during both of my runs I barely got a wave in return.

The first day I passed a walker, a biker, and another runner, and none of them waved or said hello back to me. Even when I found a YMCA membership card on the ground and ran it inside to the front desk of the YMCA, the worker there didn’t even say thank you. Not the best impression from an outsider, but I’m from the Midwest where everyone is friendly. The second day wasn’t much better, I passed 7 walkers and a biker, none of them waved back, and I passed 3 runners, and two of them waved. At least a couple of the runners were nice enough to wave. Maybe everyone was still half asleep. These were some early morning runs in the near-dark.

New Shoes


About a week ago I received some Brooks Glycerin 8’s in the mail to test out. This business trip was my chance to take them out for a spin. They are great shoes, and are set to hit the market early in 2010 I think. They have Brooks’ new DNA technology that allows the sole of the shoe to mold to the specific weight and impact of the person wearing them and change to provide the right amount of support.

They were very comfortable right out of the box and had a super ride and feel. These might be replacing my Asics Kayano’s as my regular running shoes.

The Worlds Largest Running Store

So we’re driving to the place in San Diego for my work meetings and literally a block from the office, we pass a sign that says “The World’s Largest Running Store.” So of course I had to check it out. It was a Road Runner Sports clearance store, and it was pretty cool.

I had them fit me for shoes, even though I don't really need any. The process was really cool, very high tech. They had a glass floor hooked up to a computer that when you walked over it told you what part of the foot was having pressure put on it, and they video taped my feet on a treadmill to determine pronation. Turns out I have a high arch with a slight under pronation and need a motion control shoe. It was fun. I picked up some shoe inserts and some Chafe Free gel.

I didn't get to enjoy California as I had hoped. Didn't get to the beach, or go to In and Out Burger, or the San Diego Zoo, etc. We stayed way too busy with work. So, now I need to plan a family vacation so we can do all the fun stuff next time. We had a 3 hour delay in Denver on the way home (I guess they got 18 inches of snow the day before), and I was relieved to get home in time to go trick or treating with the kids. Happy Halloween everyone.

Mid Afternoon Distraction

If you only have a minute, skip to 3:46 in the video. You're welcome.

I think some of these shots look like me at the end of a race....

Willie the Wildcat

It was Harley Day at the K-State/Texas A&M game last Saturday. We took the boys up, along with my dad, for a fun day in the Promised Land (I mean, Manhattan, Kansas). It was a great day. We went up a little early for some site seeing which included going up to Manhattan Hill, which overlooks the city. It was a bit chilly, but the sun was shining. We had a parking pass which meant we could park fairly close to the stadium, which was nice, and then we also had tickets to the VIP tent in Cat Town, with BBQ, drinks, and live Blues music before the game. It was great. We then went at checked out all the Harleys outside the stadium (which later would circle the track inside the stadium just before kickoff). There were probably 150-200 Harleys, it was awesome Willie the Wildcat was there, in full motorcycle leather gear. He lead the motorcyle parade inside the stadium. Willie the Wildcat is K-State's mascot, and he does push-ups every time KSU scores, one push up for every point. Well, he got a workout Saturday night, as KSU won 62-14. (by my estimation, he had to do 346 push ups) They demolished Texas A&M, it was awesome. (Sorry, Aggie fans).

Running Update
Ran 3 miles yesterday and today. Feeling some slight soreness in my lower legs so I'm going to take a couple days off. Considering doing the Turkey Trot 10 miler in about a month.

Giveaway --a giveaway to help you stay warm this winter

A Step in the Right Direction

I kept telling myself that even though I couldn't run for about 3 months due to plantars fasciitis, I could make the best of an injury situation and use that down time from running to do some strength training and/or try to lose that extra 15-20 pounds I've been carrying around.

Did I? No. Instead, I pretty much turned to comfort food and gained about 5 pounds while doing ZERO strength training. I guess it's kind of hard to do strength training when we don't have any weights to lift or a gym membership. (if any of you do strength training without weights, tell me how please)

Anyway, all that is said to say that I am still trying to get my running legs back, and today was a nice step forward in that direction.

I got up way too early (like 330am--crazy I know, couldn't go back to sleep), and went running around 600am, a distance of 7.5 miles, the farthest I've ran in probably 6 months or so. I felt great the whole way and took it at a nice, easy pace (like 10:30/mile). I even got to see the sun come up. It was an awesome run.

Tomorrow is our hometown marathon and I thought about volunteering, but we have too much other stuff going on tomorrow, so for anyone running the Wichita Marathon tomorrow, have a great race! The weather should be perfect. Best of luck to everyone running races this weekend.

Luna Bar Giveaway

Rut or Routine?

So for about the last 4-5 months, I've had pretty much the same thing for breakfast. Every day. Two frozen waffles, topped with low-fat peanut butter and a banana.

I like it because it tastes good, is quick to make, and is convenient. There have been a few days when I've had something different, but really 99% of the time, this is what I eat. Probably not the most nutritious breakfast, but not the worst either.

What's on your breakfast table in the morning?