Half-Crazy Marathon Club

If I Only Had A Shoe

No doubt a brain and some shoes are essential for marathon success, although if it comes down to a choice, pick the shoes. More people finish marathons with no brains than with no shoes.
~ Don Kardong

Saturday Morning Mileage

Robin -- 4
Beverly -- 4.5
Janet -- 4.5
Kristen -- 12
Tony -- 7
Chris -- 7
Sandy -- 6
Nicole -- 6
Shawn -- 6
Susan --13

A warm half-crazy welcome to Robyn Weltens and Nicole Bradshaw who logged their first half-crazy miles on Saturday morning!

Yoga for Runners

Being a die-hard yogi, Kristen wanted to pass along some articles that she thought everyone might like.

• Yoga for Runners
• It's All in the Hips
• In the Running

Interval Training

A lot of us are using intervals when we train. Kristen's LLS Team in Training mentor sent her the information attached below and she thought we might all find it useful.

Download interval_training.doc

Extreme Heat

Any of us running in the summertime in Mississippi are susceptible to the dangers of extreme heat. Read these FAQs from the CDC to recognize the effects of heat on your body and to be able to help someone suffering from heat stroke or heat exhaustion.

Some tips to help:

• Drink pretty of fluids
• Replace salt and minerals (fruit juice or a sports beverage helps)
• Wear appropriate clothing and sunscreen
• Schedule outdoor activities during the coolest time of the day (generally early morning or late evening)
• Monitor those at high risk (people who are overweight, people who are on medications)
• Adjust to the environment
• Use common sense

Team Estrogen

Kristen wrote in to tell us all about a great Web site for women-specific running and cycling clothes for all shapes and sizes. She promises that they are always having some type of sale or close out that can be found under the Products drop down. The Web site is www.teamestrogen.com. (Love the name!)

Look...these cute sandals are only $9.99. I know, I know. I'm supposed to be looking for running clothes. Oh well. ;)

(And congratulations to Kristen for 15 minutes off of her 10-mile time on Saturday!) 

Half-Crazy Feet

We met at Fleet Feet this Saturday for our regular Saturday run. The Brooks representative was in town and they were having specials on the shoes, door prizes and free bagels, juice and coffee after the run.

Here are the half-crazy folks who made it this Saturday:

Beverly Blasingame - 5 miles
Chris Carmichael - 5 miles
Susan Christensen - 5 miles
Shannon Coker - 5 miles (Shannon got lost on the Trace once, so she probably ran farther than that.) ;)
Sandy Davis - 5 miles
Judith Forshee - 4.5 miles (Congratulations, Judith. It was her first half-crazy Saturday.)
Shawn Lea - 5 miles
Nancy Thompson  - 5 miles

Kristen was there also. She ran much farther than us as she showed up for the 6 a.m. run with ther Leukemia & Lymphoma training group and then did the 7 a.m. run too.

Speaking of her training group, everyone mark your calendars for Aug. 25. We half-crazy folks are running in the Surviving the Sizzle Night Run, where all proceeds will benefit the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. You can choose between one mile, two miles or four miles. The fees are $20 per person before Aug. 10 and $25 afterwards. Corporate teams can register for $70 for up to five members.

The race will start at Reservoir Point in Ridgeland. Afterward, there is a post-race party. All pre-registered participants will receive a dri-fit Nike T-shirt. (Packets will be at Fleet Feet.) For more information or to register, e-mail Heather Butler at butlerh@lls.org.

Notes from The Penguin

Sent in by Susan Christensen:

By John Bingham
For Active.com May 16, 2006

I can see the finish line, and I feel an emotional rush that transforms me from a mere mortal into a mythical creature with winged feet. Well, OK, maybe not winged feet. How about a mythical creature with webbed feet? Forget eagles and sparrows, it's time to celebrate the power of penguins. The runner as a penguin? No way! Gazelles, cheetahs, thoroughbreds -- the metaphors for runners always seem to conjure up images of fleet-footed creatures moving swiftly across the landscape barely casting a shadow. What those metaphors miss are the thousands of us who plod steadily along, undeterred and unmoved by glycogen depletion and lactic acid buildup.

You've seen a penguin run. A chaotic flurry of feet. A living testimony to the dominance of will over form. And many of us, those for whom a 10K qualifies as their long, slow run for the week, represent no less a victory of will over form. With the indomitable force of the glaciers, we plod and shuffle our way through race after race. More amazingly, to you eagles and sparrows, we penguins are having the time of our lives. You've seen us at the races. Or at least you've seen us at the races that are out-and-back courses. We're the ones with huge smiles on our faces. We're the ones coming across the finish line as you're getting in your car to go home. Are you a penguin?You may be a penguin and not even know it. Take this simple test:

1. At your most recent race your goal was to:
a. set a new national age group record.
b. finish before the awards ceremony was over.

2. The food at the end of a race is usually:
a. a selection of fresh fruits, cookies, sports drinks, water.
b. bruised bananas and broken bits of oatmeal raisin cookies.

3. At a recent marathon you:
a. ran negative splits after mile 15.
b. stopped to get the rest room key at a service station.

4. At the finish line, the people are:
a. screaming because you just set a new national record.
b. related to you.

If you've answered 'b' to any of the questions, then you're a penguin.

Running from failure
It may surprise the eagles to know that we, the penguins, are really and truly doing the best that we can. One cannot undo the physical effects of 30 or 40 or more years of neglect and abuse in a matter of weeks or months. What one can do is to slowly but surely undo the years of emotional neglect and abuse of the soul. We penguins run with more weight than the eagles and sparrows. We run carrying the burden of failures past, present and future. We drag with us our failures as husbands and wives, fathers and mothers, sons and daughters. We carry on our shoulders the accumulated residue of diets that didn't work, exercise programs that didn't stick, and resolutions that were never kept.

Our running shoes are really erasers. Every step erases some memory of a past failure. Every mile brings us closer to a clean slate. Each foot strike rubs away a word, a look, or an event which led us to believe that success was beyond our grasp.You may be a penguin, or you may know someone who is. The running community has barely begun to attract and embrace the penguins in their midst. We're out there. We're looking for any chance at all to prove to ourselves that we can do it. We need to convince ourselves that we can persist against the odds. We're waiting to prove that we can succeed.

Tuning Your Run

Still looking for your personal PowerSong? The new Nike Sport Music section on the iTunes Music Store can help.

The newest specialty aisle on the iTunes Music Store offers tons of music to keep you on your pace. You’ll find it in the strategically timed Sport iMixes and in the playlists that such athletes as Lance Armstrong, Paula Radcliffe, Steve Nash, Vince Carter, Ronaldo and others train to.

And wait till you discover the Nike+ Workouts. Download “Drive: Nike+ Original Run” and you’ll get an original album from The Crystal Method delivering a continuous 45-minute electronic music mix orchestrated just for runners. Other workouts come with, not just music, but personal trainers. Like multiple-marathon champ Alberto Salazar, who won’t rest till he gets you up to speed.

[ via Apple eNews ]

Finish Line Fun

I want all of you to remember that our first half-marathon is on Dec. 2 - the St. Jude's Marathon. And my birthday is Dec. 3. And I really, really like these cute finish line charm bracelets.

I'm just saying is all. ;)