On Your Mark.

This Sunday I'll be running in the Susan G. Komen Race For The Cure 5K here in Kansas City. I've been training for it for a few weeks now and I'm ready to rock. Plus having run last year, I know what to expect regarding terrain, obstacles and duration. So yesterday after work, I picked up my race shirt and number at Dick's, along with some free coupons for shoes and athletic apparel (which I will probably end up using, as I need new workout clothes).

2010 T-Shirt Logo

So now that I have my race gear, it's official! I'm excited to participate again. I'm really looking forward to re-experiencing the joyous energy that pervaded downtown Kansas City last year during and after the run. I'm also extra-glad we'll be running at 7 in the morning, while the temperature will hopefully still be in the low 80s! I've been accustomed to training in 90+ degree weather during my afternoon runs, so maybe the cooler temps will give me an additional boost.

I'll be running this afternoon one last time, then switching to mornings tomorrow and Saturday to acclimate myself to the change before the actual event on Sunday. I fully expect to have a great time! Wish me luck!

Lace 'Em Up.

After a couple months of focusing solely on a muscle confusion workout, I've decided to supplement it with more cardio. Plyometrics, kenpo and core work are definitely effective in raising my heart rate, but I still feel as though I get winded too easily (although I've made lots of progress over the course of eleven weeks). So after work yesterday, I plotted out a course, waited until an hour before sunset, laced up my cross-trainers and headed out to run a few miles.

3.5 miles of asphalt and hills

It's a decent route along fairly busy streets and residential areas, with the occasional elementary school here and there, a bit of road construction, and even some sort of nature preserve where I saw some deer grazing on an expansive lawn, oblivious to traffic. But the sidewalks were uninterrupted (essential) and yappy dogs were fenced in (even more essential). In all, I made the circuit in a slow 45 minutes due to my being unused to running again. So it was no real surprise that my feet hurt and I was fatigued in a different way from an hour of P90X.

The second reason I began training is that I'll be here in Kansas City to run the Susan G. Komen Race For The Cure in early August. I had a blast last year, so I'm planning on participating again this time around. I really want to improve my performance; the route runs through downtown Kansas City, and there were some hills that I struggled with last year. So I'm glad my "practice" route has some similar inclines. I'm hoping to get some other people to join me, but I think I will still run it solo if need be.

Are you in? Lace 'em up.

Five Thousand Meters.

Figured I needed to post about this before too much time passed by. Earlier this month, I ran the 2009 Susan G. Komen Race For the Cure 5K here in downtown Kansas City. Here's my race number.

This being my first real race, I'd attempted to train for it so that I wouldn't end up eating a faceful of asphalt.  A couple of months ago I'd planned out a circuit in my neighborhood for roughly the same distance.  It actually turned out to be about 3.7 miles, a bit more than five kilometers, so it suited my purposes nicely.  Training wasn't quite as consistent as I would've liked it to be -- there were days when I'd just be too tired or busy to run -- but I think I improved quickly and increased my stamina (plus it didn't feel quite like a Couch Potato To 5K program since I'd been a regular runner in the past).

It felt good to train though, and on the circuit I attempted to run a little more and walk a little less every time.

Early on the morning of the race, I carpooled with My Peoples to secure a decent parking space downtown and parked at the World War I Memorial.  Yes, it's cliched, but the mood down at Union Station was definitely electric.

 

We heard later that the turnout was over 28,000 people!  Most, like us, were part of groups and participating in the non-competitive race-walk.  Some were even decked out in funny T-shirts with a dedication to a loved one and/or clever group name, or other various eye-catching pink costumes and attire like capes, angel wings or boas (the serious, competitive runners had already started their race a few minutes earlier).

Before long we had assembled on Grand waiting for our turn to take off -- since we couldn't all go at once, start times were staggered.  It took four of us, the ones who would be running the distance, a good ten minutes to reach the front of the pack and all of a sudden we were off at a brisk pace, weaving in and out of slower runners and walkers.  I'm not saying we were Speedy Gonzales with it but a lot of people were just walking and enjoying themselves, and dodging them took a bit of strategy.

Every few blocks, volunteers handed out water cups, while live bands of all genres belted out upbeat songs to keep us motivated.  They provided a good adrenaline boost especially on some of the uphill sections of the course.  In retrospect I'm really glad I trained outside and not on a treadmill -- it feels completely different.

Nonetheless, a couple of times I had to stop and walk for a minute or two to catch my breath (my lungs always end up fatiguing long before my legs do).  I was hoping to be able to run the whole thing but it wasn't the case.  I didn't mind though.  I was able to soak in the tremendously fun atmosphere of the event and kicked back into high gear.  The course definitely seemed three miles long as there were times when it admittedly got a bit tough due to my relative newness to the sport, but we crossed the finish line, tired yet very proud, to the loud cheers of hundreds of raucous, smiling people.

The exhilirating experience of running downtown with thousands of other people, combined with the positive energies of all the volunteers and racers, was one of the best things I've done for myself this year.  I'd definitely run again, and now that I know what to expect, train a little more consistently for it so that I won't gas out during the more difficult portions of the course.  It was such a great time though, and thanks to everyone who shared this day with me.

Breaking Free Of The Hamster Wheel.

There's a mini-heatwave rolling through the Kansas City metro area, with highs hovering in the mid-90s. Which in itself isn't so bad, but add the notorious Midwest humidity factor and heat index in there and it's around 105. It should only last until the end of the week (and even resulted in a pretty spectacular thunderstorm a couple of nights ago that had me staring in awe at the sky from my living room window), but it's made me kinda glad I work in the cool confines of a hospital. A brief walk outside earlier today confirmed the temperature; the heat was almost visible steaming up from the asphalt driveway outside the Emergency Department. So ... I won't be going jogging until the sun has at least started to set and I'm sure my cross-trainers aren't gonna melt upon contact with the sidewalk.

I used to hate running outside. I preferred the easy pace and gentle slopes of the gym treadmill; there was almost always something halfway-interesting to watch on the television above, or I could always zone out with whatever was in my iPod. It was enjoyable, and I ran my miles without a second thought alongside my fellow joggers arranged in orderly rows.

But then I started getting bored. Mostly bored of the constant scenery -- I stared at the computer long enough at school and at home; why glue my eyes on yet another monitor during my run? To a lesser extent, I also became tired of the treadmill itself, with the red digits ticking away the minutes and mileage. I found myself glancing down at the display more often than I should have; doing so made the time creep by that much slower and my distance goal that much farther. At times, I almost felt like a hamster. A sweaty, jogging hamster.


The first time I tried running outside I damn near passed out. Being so used to the even, relatively soft surface of treadmill rubber, my feet instantly let me know of their displeasure with concrete and asphalt after a few hundred feet from my house. Ignoring their protests, I soldiered on and began learning to adapt to the new, harsher terrain. It wasn't much longer before I started running out of breath. I just wasn't accustomed to the changing slopes and hills of the neighborhood, and I was unfamiliar with having to constantly adjust my stride to match the path I'd picked out. Needless to say I wore out pretty fast and ended up running considerably less than my usual treadmill mileage. Nooooob!

But it was a start. And it did feel good to have a change of scenery and fresh air. My body adapted fairly quickly to exercising in the new environment, and now I like running outside better than the hamster wheel. I think I get a better workout jogging actual blocks, and counting off actual miles. Obviously when it gets too cold to run outside, I'll retreat to the gym and the treadmill, but for now, hey ... it's too nice out.

I'm starting to train for the Susan G. Komen Race For The Cure 5K here in Kansas City, happening in early August (which was the inspiration for this post). If you're not a runner, there's a non-competitive run/walk event scheduled on the same day -- which is what I'll be entering as part of a team we formed here at the hospital. If you live in KC, come through! Let's go running :)