Pottruck

So sad. Everyone else gets to start their training plans, and I have nothing to train for (I will miss BSR, though maybe I will join this). Went to the gym. Ran 5K in 20:44 = 6:41 pace. Then did 12 minutes stairmaster and 3 jump rope circuits (jump rope for 90 seconds, block jumps, attack jumps). Then pigged out on leftover stromboli. Yum again.

YTD

Frozen

OK. I feel like it's only honest to blog my fitness failures also.

I tried to go running yesterday but was turned back by the weather. I have no hat. Gary gave me a wonderful US Ski Team fleece hat that I loved but lost sometime last winter. Then I lost my little fleece ear band. Then TSA lost/stole my TurtleFur hat (though I did get a $700 check from United last week compensating me for it, and everything else that I had stolen from my luggage at Christmas! hooray!). So now I have nothing.

Anyways, long story short, I went out for a river run just after sunset last night. Got to the river and the wind was gusting. My ColdGear kept me warm enough, but without anything to cover them, my big honkin' ears were like little sails catching each gust. I went for about a mile, then it just got too painful so I ran with my gloves over my ears for another 1/8 of a mile. Then I realized that trying to run with my hands on my ears was absolutely ridiculous, so I turned around and came home.

Came home to make and stuff my face with spinach/feta/mushroom/roasted red pepper/BACON/stromboli. Yum.

Pottruck

Gym date with C. Ran 3 miles on the treadmill in 20:30ish? My hamstrings and back have been sore. Ick.

YTD is up into the mountains. It feels like cheating to be logging these miles on a treadmill @ 1.0 incline. Only have to run half-marathons tomorrow, Monday, and Tuesday to reach my mileage goal for Feb. Heh. Right.

Pottruck

Ran 4 miles, did 10 minutes stairmaster. YTD

Cheeky 5K

There's always time to squeeze in a quick 5k loop. Did it in reverse this time: up 22nd, around the museum, back down by the river. Good times. YTD

Have been filling my ears with Illinoise, Sufjan Stevens second album (the first was a compilation of songs about the greatest state in the union, Michigan! His project is to do an album for all 50 states) It is soft, sweet, sad music... definitely folksy (banjo, mandolin?). Reminds me of things celestial. Favorite track: Casimir Pulaski Day.

River Run

6mi, up to US Grant statue and back via the Art Museum, Parkway, + 22nd. A little stiff from yesterday so nothing fantastic, just miles. Actually forgot my watch AND iPod today. A PR in forgetfulness :-) YTD with yesterday's cooldown mile.

This blog needs more photos. Unfortunately my camera lens is broken so I'm stuck with other people's pics. This one features at least four fellow bloggers busting some moves at the Foxy wedding.

Hutch VB

Played with the Wharton kids + Mike, Tasha, and Junmin. It was lots of fun, though I was making errors left and right. Want to play more.

Did a quick leg lifting circuit upstairs, ran 1mi to cool down. Weather is warm again. Maybe I'll run outside tomorrow.

Pottruck

Went to the gym early. 30 minutes of cardio (3 mile run @ 7:00 pace, elliptical to round out the rest). Love having the rest of the day in front of me! YTD

Pottruck

Miss Bertozzi phoned me at 8.30 this morning to see if I wanted to run. I checked the weather and it was 15 degrees out so we decided to go to church early instead. Would have liked to do a long run this afternoon but it got cold again as the sun went down and Dimitris and AK were cooking "bunny" for us, so had to keep it short. OK. All of that is a long prelude to saying that by the time I got to the gym, changed, etc., I only had time to do 25 minutes of cardio at Pottruck. Boo!

Hutch

Foiled twice. On Thursday night, the women's club team booted Mike, Cara and I from Hutch. On Friday the gym was set up for a gymnastics meet. It is so difficult to find a court to play on here at Penn! The reason? The Palestra has a court, but well, I wouldn't expect to be able to use it. Weightman, with its beautiful pair of courts is off limits to everyone except varsity teams (and club teams when the varsity coaches are feeling generous). Pottruck has several beautiful new courts, usually at < 50% capacity, but the floor wasn't built strong enough to support volleyball net standards. Which leaves Hutch as the only viable option for non-varsity and non-club grad student "teams" like the Pigs, SWAT, and ISSVC. Unfortunately Hutch is also used for fencing and gymnastic meets, local high school cheerleading jamborees (I'm not kidding) and pretty much anyone in West Philly who wants a pickup basketball game (unlike Pottruck, security is not tight at Hutch which, I suspect, is why the nice new basketball-only courts at Pottruck are barely used but Hutch is constantly crammed with players who get pissed off when our balls fly into their court, or we kick them off the ONLY COURT ON CAMPUS). Hmm. I guess I'm a little annoyed. Oh well, soon it'll be summer and I can play at Drexel or with my grass net. Hooray. Or maybe I'll find a team in Grenoble to practice with.

Yes, I don't know if I've mentioned this: I'm going to INRIA Rhône Alpes for either 6 or 12 weeks in mid-March. Woot.

OK. Today's workout: 20 minutes of hills on the elliptical, then 3.5mi on the treadmill. 44 minutes total cardio. YTD

Anyone up for a long group run this weekend? Meet at the Art museum and do Strawberry Mansion (~5mi) or the full Falls Rd (8.4mi?) loop? It would be fun to run with a big group...

Morning Run

Did an early run of a little more than 4mi up the river path with Pavol. YTD

Pottruck

Did 6mi on the treadmill. I don't normally run more then 3-4 miles inside--too boring and the miles click by so slowly when you are forced to sit in front of Dr. Phil. But the one thing I like about the treadmill is the ability to dial up a pace and go right at that pace for a fixed amount of time. Today did a ladder of sorts: 1.5mi @ 10.30, 1 mi @ 6.20, .5 mi @ 3.10 then back down again once more: 1.5mi @ 10.10, 1mi @ 6.15, .5mi @ 3.30. Much more fun than slogging for 40 minutes straight! Saw Lainie on my way out for a drink between ladders.

YTD

Catching up

Played volleyball @ Hutch on Friday night for a little over an hour.

Ran at Pottruck this morning: 4 miles @ 7min pace and 1.0 incline. Biked to cool down and round out 35 minutes of cardio.

Frosty 5K

Ran 5K along the river as per the training plan. It is COLD out there--32 degrees F. Wait, that shouldn't be so cold for a boy from Michigan. I've played baseball in colder (HBP = no fun!). Pushed a bit on the second half, came in at 20:56 = 6:45 pace.

YTD zips through Gettysburg (pictured). Need to run 82 miles in 21 days to reach monthly goal. Seems a little unlikely given all my weekend and work plans.

Pottruck

Hit the gym with my special lady friend. Some beginning speedwork on the treadmill to prepare for BSR: 9 minute warmup, then 4 sets of .5mi run at 6:00 pace with 1:00 jogging in between to recover, 5 minutes to cool down. Then lifted arms. Fun!

YTD enters Gettysburg.

Baby it's cold outside!!

Another frozen outdoor run. Thankful for ColdGear! Ran up to Leif then back by--gasp!--another route. Yes, I am getting bored with the river path. Swung around the museum, down the parkway, then down 22nd to finish it off. Nice change of scenery, though stopping for the lights at Race, Market, and Spruce was annoying. It's hard to get your sprint on when the same taxis who try to mow you down on your bike during the day are speeding around corners and through red lights... oh yeah, and you're wearing all black. Speaking of my black getup, by far the funniest moment of my run came in the first 5 steps. I ran across 22nd, up over the curb and hopped over a little tree box. Standing on the sidewalk near that box was a short, petite blond girl. She was staring at something on the ground when I hopped and looked up as I was mid-leap. I imagine having a 6' boy, dressed in black, mid-jump coming towards you is a little surprising. She jumped out of her shoes and gave a little yelp, then started laughing. I laughed too, apologized and ran off.

With today and yesterday YTD inches ever slowly towards Gettysburg.

Move along, nothing to see here

Ran 2mi (in 13:14!) on varied virtual treadmill terrain, and lifted legs (leg press, hamstrings, quads, calves, lunges).

Cold! No really, it's freakin' cold!!

Woke in my new smaller, and hence well-heated, room to a view of beautiful blue skies out the window. My mind was tricked into thinking that the weather would be mild. Hit the river trail for my "long" run woefully underdressed. Did a loop out W River Dr to Strawberry Mansion then back on Kelley Dr to the Art Museum where I gave in to the cold wind on my bare skin and snuck inside to warm up. Walked back down 22nd. 7.25mi total running. Not the 9-10 I was hoping for, but miles nevertheless. Forgot my watch, but I think the pace was OK (after a 10ish minute slow warmup). YTD

Pottruck

Today was a very exciting day. I got to do JERM circuits with JeRM himself (in town visiting because his fiancée had an interview for the PhD program at Temple this morning). Warmed up with slightly less than 2.5mi of running on the treadmill in ~16:30, then biked for 5mi (about 10 minutes). Didn't feel great running, but it's OK--I wanted to save up for a long run this weekend and my legs have felt toasted for a few days now. Then upstairs for quick JERMs (bench, row, shoulder press, triceps)!! Saw Nolan and Lainie lifting on the 3rd floor. YTD

US Grant

Up to US Grant and back = 6mi on the nose in 42:26. Felt fast going out, then turned around and realized I'd had a strong tailwind the whole way out. Slogged back down boathouse row in the same (now) headwind, then turned the corner at the Art Museum and it lessened for the last 1.5mi. Saw Heidi running the other way at the top of the little rise at Spring Garden Bridge. YTD

Groundhog's Day Eve

So everybody and their mom has a fitness blog now (sorry Becky, I know you're not a mom but you're the only Mrs. with a fitness blog that I know).

Started February off with a bang. A 7mi bang up to the rowing shell and back. Still feeling sluggish from lack of sleep, but my pace wasn't as bad as I thought it was: 7:10 minutes/mile. I did the bit from Leif to home pretty quickly and basically sprinted from Market... which helped. Fun things from this run: the stillness of the river and the lights from the west side reflected under the SEPTA bridge at mile 2.5, the funny runner singing at the top of his lungs and doing intervals around mile 3, the brand new, shrink-wrapped Vespoli shell on Boathouse row begging me and 7 friends (and one short, light, loud friend) to put it in the river and put it to use (not that I know how to row).

YTD stops smack in the middle of York.