Getting into a Groove

So I was concerned about training after work. I just don't get up early enough to run before work, so I run afterwards. So far it's been pretty good. Since I'm already in the habit of taking the dog for a walk right after getting home, running just means changing into running gear instead of jeans and then running instead of walking. Distance-wise it's no different than my usual walk route so far, but I'm just building up a foundation again. Today I think I ran a whole mile before stopping. The GPS/heart rate monitor is out of juice, plus I'm trying to start easy with no pressure. I run at an easy pace until I feel tired, then I walk a bit, then run some more.

The dog is learning more about pacing, and frankly I'm relearning it myself. I know this has been posted before here, but I think it's worth repeating. It's amazing how much we forget about training when it's been a while since we've trained. I mean, intellectually I knew that my calves might feel tight and that it would be hard to pace early in the run but it's another to experience it again. Luckily at this point in my running I recognize a lot about myself much faster than before and can correct sooner. This prevents injury and keeps the run enjoyable. At the end of the day that's my goal: enjoy the run and enjoy the benefits of being in shape.

Have you ever stopped running or working out for a while and then took it back up again? This should be fairly common considering the significant drop off in gym attendance after March :)

Back to running!

The weather was perfect today (it has been an unusually warm and wet winter for us in the Southeast). Rex and I took advantage of it and headed out to the trails with the dog. Since we're just getting back into training mode we took it pretty easy. The dog has to have a chance to work up his endurance too, so I paid careful attention to him. Dogs won't tell you they are hurting or are out of energy, so be very mindful if you want to run with your dog.

All in all it was a great time! Rex needs to make a visit to a doctor for his feet, but we knew that was coming and he's working on it. This half marathon is great motivation :)

Happy New Year!

Now that the holidays are officially over, the feasts eaten, gifts bought, opened, and possibly exchanged or returned and alcohol consumed, we now look forward to the new year and hope for a fresh start in more ways than one. This has been a rough year for a lot of people for a lot of reasons, but I think the reason we keep making resolutions is because we'd like things to be better. We're creatures who hope for better. In the spirit of clean slates, we vow to do things like make more time for family,exercise more, lose weight, and become more financially responsible. I hope everyone manages to meet at least some of their resolutions.

For those who have made fitness or weight loss related resolutions, I have compiled a few articles here to help you get started. Happy new year!!

Need music to work out? Check out these reviews.

Want to be healthier but need an idea on how to do that? Try one of these resolutions.

It's one thing to say you'll run more. It's another to actually commit and register for a race. Set a goal by finding a race here.

Good luck!

Rex and I are committed to a race!

And what a race! It's the Chicagoland Half Marathon!!! Can I use more exclamation points? YES!!!!!!

So what's this race about? Raising funds for cancer research, for one. The link for the site is here. There are several things about this race that have me excited:

• Chicago is an awesome city to visit.
• The timing is great - May 20th is perfect since we have time to get in shape and the weather will be good.
• The race course will be flat!!!

I really liked the Georgia Half Marathon, but honestly it was really too hilly for a first long race. I'd like a chance to try a flatter course, and then I can go back to that race. It's well organized and fun to run. It's just something I'd like to try it again next year.

This means the Warrior Dash is out too, but that's okay. I don't want to over do that race. Rex and I are going to have a lot of fun, the money goes towards a great cause, and it'll be a chance to get out of Atlanta for a long weekend.

Woooohooooo!!!

Are antibiotics making us fat?

It's been a while since I've posted, and mostly it's because nothing of interest has really happened. I did, however, come across this article that I think most people need to be aware of. So far it seems that this data is correlational (meaning we haven't determined a cause, if one exists), but this is some scary stuff. If antibiotics are used to make animals fat so that they yield more meat at slaughter, then would those same antibiotics not make us fat when we eat that meat? I'll let the article go over the details, but needless to say this makes me rethink eating as much meat as I do.