Harumph!

Alright! Alright! Its time to come clean with myself. I haven't run since Sunday's Glastonbury River Run 5K and have a REALLY good excuse. I mean, look at that face!! Can you deny that? Because I cant. His little smirk is practically screaming "you knowwww you wanna go play in trees and go get chinese food, then ice cream. C'mon Auntie. Seriously."
I mean, one might contend that chasing after this little bopper might actually cumulatively add up to being more than a solo run, so actually, Im AHEAD of the game! HA! I win!

No, in all seriousness I took Monday off because, well, its my day off and I was also recovering from the 5K on Sunday. HOLY MOTHER OF GOD IT WAS HOT! I mean, really hot. It is safe to say that no runner on that course was acclimatized to the heat yet... as evident by the grown men pathetically wheezing their way over to the finish line with outstretched arms, begging in whisper for a popsicle. The neighbors that lived on the course were awesome though, especially the one 99 year old woman who took it upon herself to recognize that, yes, it was indeed her civic responsibility to stand out there in a housecoat and hose down each and every one of us. Its people like that that totally motivate me to keep going. I mean, what person wakes up in the morning and is all like, "I have to be out by 1pm and hold a hose for 45 minutes straight. The people need me." I would never do that, nevermind when Im all osteoporotic! Ill be the one who is like, "Ohhhkayyy, who is the lucky great-great grandkid that's bathing my bones this fine day?" So Hilary, George, and I finished in a ridiculously respective time, considering a) the elements AND b) that it was Georgey Boy's first 5K! Big ups to Colli, who despite his terrible choice for shoes, un-sunscreened bald head and polyester shorts, FINISHED!!!

Anyway, so yeah when I actually do run, Ill check back in. This heat wave kind of threw me for a loop. Harumph!

The life of an addict...a BioFreeze addict

Hi, my name is Krystina and I'm an addict. An addict of what, well from a clinical standpoint, many things I guess. I'm addicted to caffeine like any other red blooded American so I guess thats normal but tell me I can't have my after work martini or you take away The Real Housewives of New York City and we're going to have words, a shouting match even. Although the martini has recently been substitued for protein shakes (we'll save that for another entry) and the Housewives will eventually turn into a different reality show fad, my love for caffeine will never subside and nor will my new found addiction to BioFreeze. This A-MAZING product not only got me through the Hartford Half with a torn ACL, it also helped me through physical therapy and continues to hold me up through this whole trainig thing. Lets just put it this way, I was able to complete my 2 mile run last night without any problems and I don't even feel sore today. Now before I go off handing out free bottles outside the local gym let me explain that after I ran last night, I stretched and iced my knee...this shit doesn't work miracles, got that? What it does do is slightly numb the area applied to and gives me a sense of false hope that my knee is getting better faster than it really is. This may or may not be a bad thing. Either way, I love it and it loves me.

Running runway

Typically I like to jog with a friend; afterall, its someone to talk to and push you through your route and maybe even encourage you to take the long way back home after you've made your loop. But due to the heat and the 5K Amanda ran in earlier, I was forced to run alone. Don't get me wrong, I'm not a baby about this and I am fully capable of motivating myself however, I have self doubts when hitting the streets solo. When I was younger I used to see people running through my neighborhood all the time and I can remember two people in particular. One was an older gentleman who was probably in his late 40's, early 50's at the time and he ran all the time, like every day, rain or shine. Despite his dedication to the sport, he still ran like a drunken duck...a full out waddle if you will. Then there was this other girl who would deck herself out in all Green Bay Packers gear which I will never fault anyone for, what can I say, she has good taste. Nevertheless, it wasn't her attire that was so eye catching but the way she would walk. She would literally bounce in every step and she looked like she was walking on a trampoline. So now its time to turn the mirror on myself and I wonder how strange I run. I try to catch glances of myself when I run past store fronts but the blinds in the windows or the stupid writing always screws up my line of sight. I think I look good but who knows, my face is always beet red and my arms always hang lifeless at my sides or at least I try to make them. Plus, I'm still in pain with my knee when I run so its hard to hide the stroke victim esque grimmace on my face. My ultimate goal is to look like I'm gliding down the runway when I get out there. Hair flowing, fierce look, skin glistening and all flawless...but half the time my hair has flyways and frizzies and I'm constantly sniffing. Maybe I'll wear some lip gloss before I head out tonight.

Stupid baby, Carbs are great!

I was going to comment on Amanda's blog but this certainly deserves a new post. First of all, don't be stupid Amanda, Carbs are the best thing ever invented and as a runner you need them! I unfortunately have made the same mistakes which includes substituting carbs in the afternoon with proteins. And I realize how much carbs I go through when its Wednesday and I've already eaten a dozen hard boiled eggs. Ok, that is an exaggeration, I only eat one or two a day but you get the idea. I definitely feel like I have more energy though and I feel ready to run whether I want to or not. I've also integrated leafy vegetables and high fiber fruits, I don't discriminate. Next step, weeding out the morning bagel for oatmeal but I'll be dammned if I give up that spoonful of PB that goes with my bagel, you'll get in there somehow oh glorious peanut butter.

Enough about the dieting, more about the physical training. If any of you are familiar with Family Guy then you're also familiar with the loveable character Joe Swanson. For you non-Family Guy followers, let me get you up to speed real quick. Joe Swanson is a handicapped police officer for the Pawtucket PD. He lost the use of his legs in an unfortunate encounter on Christmas eve with a grinch-like burglar. Nevertheless, Joe has maintained his upper body physique while simultaneously loosing his legs in the atrophy battle. In short, Joe is jacked on top, baby legs on bottom. I feel a close connection with this fictional, animated hero because I too am suffering from this same aliment at this time but in a more disproprotioned fashion. My right leg is beefy, muscular, and pretty damn hot in my opinion. My left leg looks like your grandmother's left leg minus the liver spots, wrinkles, and spider veins. Ugggh, I just grossed myself out. So here I am running like I have a peg leg while at the same time, trying not to use my popeye arms while I run to conserve energy...goddamn cartoon.

Catch the show, I'm running 2 miles in West Hartford around the center with my nugget Amanda.

*Note-if you think I'm weird for calling her a nugget, familiarize yourself with Chelsea Handler. She changed my life and I believe we were separated at birth.

Sesame Street is wrong. Veggies ARENT good for you.

Okay. So I did about 3 mi last night and then came home and sulked. In an attempt to cut about 50% of my carb intake out of my diet- so that I would eat more fruits and vegetables, Ive managed to... well, cut 50% of carbs out of my diet. Therefore, I was lethargic, weak and miserable. An ordinarily easy run ended up being pure agony. NOT how I wanted to start this record. No fear though. Im italian. Im sure I can think of SOME way to get more carbs in or around my mouth. If you want to be all Kate Moss about it, thats cool, but for athletes- carbs are your friend.

Anyway, as far as mileage, my goal right now is just maintenance. I should be able to run about 5mi comfortably before I start official training... which will be in about a month. We have a 5K on Sunday (Glastonbury River Run), so that will be fun. Anyway, here is the official schedule we will be using.

Week	Mon	Tue	Wed	Thur	Fri	Sat	Sun
1	rest	3 m run	3 m run	3 m run	rest	6	cross
2	rest	3 m run	3 m run	3 m run	rest	7	cross
3	rest	3 m run	4 m run	3 m run	rest	5	cross
4	rest	3 m run	4 m run	3 m run	rest	9	cross
5	rest	3 m run	5 m run	3 m run	rest	10	cross
6	rest	3 m run	5 m run	3 m run	rest	7	cross
7	rest	3 m run	6 m run	3 m run	rest	12	cross
8	rest	3 m run	6 m run	3 m run	rest	13	cross
9	rest	3 m run	7 m run	4 m run	rest	10	cross
10	rest	3 m run	7 m run	4 m run	rest	15	cross
11	rest	4 m run	8 m run	4 m run	rest	16	cross
12	rest	4 m run	8 m run	5 m run	rest	12	cross
13	rest	4 m run	9 m run	5 m run	rest	18	cross
14	rest	5 m run	9 m run	5 m run	rest	14	cross
15	rest	5 m run	10 m run	5 m run	rest	20	cross
16	rest	5 m run	8 m run	4 m run	rest	12	cross
17	rest	4 m run	6 m run	3 m run	rest	8	cross
18	rest	3 m run	4 m run	2 m run	rest	rest	race

Fun right? I dont know how Im going to make it through the Mondays and Fridays.

It works, and we need more followers

I have just carefully scrutinized Amanda's post and have decided that although her gramatical errors are few, she is dead on here. First though, let me paint the picture of this Tanya Harding-esque blow to my knee:

Here I am, 2 minutes left in the game and we're down by one goal against Wethersfield FC (they are confirmed to be a bunch of assholes). Here I go sprinting after a loose ball like the star soccer player I am when all of the sudden some 200 pound gorilla comes charging out of the net like a force of nature not known to man. He lowered his gargantuan shoulders and nailed me sideways sending me to the floor in agony. At this point, I am screaming in pain and I all I can think of is, "How the hell am I going to run the Hartford Half?" I mean, god damn it, I had been hard core training for a little over 5 weeks at this point and I was ready! So I wiped the pellets off my face and hobbled to the sidelines, pulled my shit together, slapped on some lip gloss and put myself in the mind set that, "Yes, I will run still!"


Scene: Race Day Hartford, CT

As an unregistered runner, I felt a little scandalous ducking under the ropes and getting in the starting line but hey, I don't live by any rules but my own. And with Amanda by my side and looking down at her smiling child like face, I knew we were doing this, torn ACL or not. 13.1 miles, 2 hours 20 minutes, and a few cat calls in the ghetto later, we were crossing the finishing line!

Fast forward now through 6 months of crutches, bitching, braces, more bitching, rehab, and oh yeah, for the first 3 days after my surgery my mom had to help me bathe. That old bird hasn't seen my naked ass in almost 23 years I'm pretty sure and let me tell you, it takes you down a peg or two when your mom comments on your ass cellulite. Now, this is all motivation to get me going and take that little nugget Amanda with me.

So training most likely began yesterday when I ran 1.6 miles for the first time and dare I say, six months! It hurt a little but pain goes away with time, hard work, and pain killers.

I'm doing the full in October whether I like it or not. Plus Amanda and Pizzi are excellent motivators when we're running and Amanda says, "Krystina, you can't talk to me for the next mile." What can I say, I can't shut up when I need to. I'll update as the training continues and when we finish the 5K in Glastonbury.

This might or might not work.

I always thought blogs were silly, but then the more I thought about it, the more I realized that its like an electronic diary! I dont even like diaries, but I think I dont like them because I hate hand writing things out. Problem solved! Anwyays, this might or might not work to keep us motivated for the task at hand, which is.... (cue the drums)

So, Krystina and I are planning on running the Hartford Marathon this year, and Im secretly (but now publicly) scared. Here's why.

1) After a devastating Tanya Harding style blow to the knee during one of our very elite co-ed soccer games, Krystina recently had surgery on her ACL. Actually, it was slightly less dramatic, but the end result was the same.

2) I get crazy ideas in my head and are very gung ho about them, and then lose interest almost as quickly as it took me to conjur up the said crazy idea. In other words, its no secret that I have ADD, but its also no secret that IF I put my mind to something, Im an upstoppable force of 5 feet nature. Which brings me to my next point.

3) Im not naturally "made" to run a marathon. Im short. Im a natural born sprinter. I like eating cake. I dont like making plans (Long runs would take up a lot of time). My dad said my toes look like sausage links and my arches are really high. My podiatrist didnt necessarily disagree.

Anyway, the point of this blog is to keep sort of a diary of mileage, emotions, anectdotes, and other necessary information to keep me and Krystina motivated to make it all the way to 26.2 miles on 10.10.09 (D Day). Now that Ive re-read this post it appears that any psychologist would have a field day with this. Ive basically list listed reasons why we SHOULDNT run the marathon, but no reasons why we SHOULD! Negative, no more!

AHEM!

1) I have already done two 1/2 Marathons and the New Haven Road Race (12.something miles). I know what its like to feel like you cant do something, work for it, and then just do it. I can totally do this!

2) Krystina did the Hartford Half with me last year, so we have both already done a 1/2 Marathon together. We are familiar with eachothers running styles, etc. and have no problem saying to eachother, "lets go fatty, pick up the freakin pace".

3) My Masters was in Health Promotion and concentrated on Kinesiology. Not only does this give me more insight into understanding training and how the body works, but people who are in this field dont gravitate to this field for no reason at all. Because of this, I am surrounded by TONS of amazing people who most would consider overcompulsive exercisers, but who I just consider awesome. They know stuff. They are kind of big deals. They are the type of people who would punch me in the face and call me a baby if I complained.

4) My bumper has a scratch on it. Its $700 to fix it. What would be really awesome is just to cover that up with a 26.2 bumper sticker. I mean, its just economical at this point.