Two months.

I've been avoiding this blog. Not because I don't love it. And, certainly, not because I no longer love running.

I've been avoiding the blog because I haven't been running and what the heck do you write about when you're hanging around on the disabled list for months?

In my case, nothing. You choose not to write about anything because if you did write about something it would probably sound like whining and, honestly, who wants to read that?

No one.

And so. Here I am. Two months into living with my injured hamstring. I tried to run earlier in January and it did not go well. So I am sticking with cross-training these days. I use the elliptical a few days a week and sometimes still ride the bike. I've also been doing some HIIT workouts that I've found on the trusty TV. Their fun -- and different. 

What else?

Well, I've been going for chiropractic treatments and my chiropractor recently started doing the Graston technique on my lame hamstring. Working toward full recovery!

I've also been very busy with my doTERRA business -- teaching lots of classes and sharing my enthusiasm for natural wellness solutions and essential oils with anyone who wants to listen :-) This time of the year, I am especially grateful to have these things in my life -- as people all around me are catching one illness after another, my family and I are staying healthy! Woo hoo!

So, that's where this happy runner is these days. Recovering. Working. Enjoying my boys. All good.

Of course, it would be better to be running. But, I'll take what I can get :-)

Have a great week, everyone!

Back to zero.

My running had been going so well and then -- justlikethat -- it all went downhill.

The day before Thanksgiving, we drove to Long Island. We got caught in the bad snowstorm that hit upstate NY that week and our usually 3 hour drive became 4.5 hours. During the stressful ride, I felt my right hamstring tighten up. For the last hour or so of the trip, it was hurting in that dull, achey, tight way that I really, really should have listened to.

The next day, I went out for a run with my young niece who was also in town, up from Virginia. A little over 3 miles into our run, I had to stop. I felt searing pain at the top of my hamstring/my glute. I hoped, hoped, hoped it just needed a little stretch. So I stretched gently and then started to run again -- only I couldn't.

I couldn't run at all. I had a flashback to last spring when I'd torn those muscles in my left hip/glute. And how loooooong it took to heal and for me to get back to running.

I wanted to cry. But I didn't. Instead, Maggie and I walked back to my sister-in-law's house (well, I kinda hobbled, she walked with her nice brisk I-could-totally-be-running-now stride).

And I haven't run since.

We did, however, enjoy seeing so much of the family over the holiday.

My mother-in-law in the middle with several of her grandchildren.

My mother-in-law in the middle with 6 of her kids and their spouses/partners.

Now, I'm walking a little, riding the bike, getting back to the weight-lifting I neglected during marathon training. I am not running at all for the rest of the year. My hope is that this intentional rest, along with frequent applications of lemongrass oil and Deep Blue rub, and much-needed sessions with my chiropractor, will help my leg heal completely and I'll be back running with no problems at the beginning of 2015!

Fingers crossed!

In the meantime, happy December, everyone!

Running. One, two, three.

After seven loooooong weeks off from running, I was allowed to test my hip last Friday. My doctor had told me to avoid any and all hills for the first few weeks back to running so I knew I needed a super flat area to run. I also knew I was nervous and worried about my first post-injury run. I needed to run someplace where I could stop quickly if I needed to.

So, I turned to my trusty treadmill for my first run.

Not ideal, in many ways, but totally perfect in others.

I walked a half mile. Then, I sped up (a bit) and ran for a minute. Felt fine. I walked for a minute and then promised myself I would run a half mile, no more, no matter how good I felt.

And that is what I did. I ran a joyful, pain-free half mile. Then, I walked another half mile. All was good. Until I hopped off the treadmill and, yeah, my hip felt a little sore. I iced it on and off all night and again the next day and, fortunately, I felt pretty good!

On Sunday, I ran again. This time, I walked a half mile, ran for two miles, and then walked a half mile. Super duper!! I felt like I was really running. Yes, it was a slow run. And, yes, it was a short run. But, no, I did not have pain!

Until a little while later, when I felt the hip again. So, back to icing, back to loading up on the vitamin c.

And then, yesterday. I walked for a quarter mile and then ran . . . until I started to feel pain, when I promptly stopped running. And promptly began to curse my apparently-not-yet-fully-healed muscles.

I am now re-resting. No run today, which was planned, and no run again until I no longer feel this pain. Am I bummed? Sure, a little. But, this is just where I am right now. The most important thing I can do is be patient.

Honestly, though, it does rot a little to go from thinking I'm healing and on my way back, to being forced back into rest mode.

Wah, wah . . .

In other news, my computer konked out on me last week, which accounts a bit for my absense from blogging. Soon enough, though, I hope to be back among the computerized.

Running and computing -- I see both in my future. When exactly, I don't know!

Thanks for stopping by!

 

 

The weirdness of not running.

Today is Day 41 of No Running. That's one day shy of 6 weeks without a run. Just hanging out, resting and obsessing about my bum hip.

One would think, if one were to think about such things, that a hip would heal after resting for 41 days. One might further think that said hip would feel wonderfully ready to run and that the body attached to that hip would be raring to go. For a run, that is.

One would be wrong.

You see, there is a weirdness to this whole not running thing. Rest, when entered into voluntarily (as an important part of a training program) and/or with the promise of something good at the end (like a baby after not running while pregnant), is manageable and almost always rejuvenating. It doesn't mess with your head the way injury rest does mostly, I imagine, because it is controlled. When you decide to do something -- in this case, rest -- you control it, it doesn't control you.

True. Very true.
Thanks, ilovetorun.org!

Injury rest is a total control freak.

Injury rest doesn't let the runner decide when to get back to running. That decision lies solely with the injured body part. If the injured body part isn't healed in a week, a month, two months . . . well, honey, you can forget about running.

And that lack of control is more or less the crux of the weirdness of not running.

I can't stand it. I can't stand thinking about my hip and whether or not it is healing on schedule. I can't stand feeling like I am missing out. I can't stand worrying that I might not be able to run the marathon in October because, after all, I am still not able to run.

I'm pretty good about shaking those thoughts out of my head and accepting that right now I can't run but I will be back, stronger than ever.

What ifs, however, have been known to creep in to my otherwise tough mind. What if I still have pain next week? What if this swelling that refuses to go away is something bad? What if the doctor was rushed when he saw me, misread the MRI and was wrong in his diagnosis -- and I'm doomed to never run again?

I reason with myself: Then you'll rest for another week. Then you'll find a new treatment and deal with the swelling and it will go away. Then you'll hunt down that crazy triathlete doctor of yours and kick him in the shin.

Yeah, see, more weirdness.

Not running is weird and I can't wait to stop being such a weirdo. With any luck I'll be a little less weird in one week. One week to test run day -- I'm counting down the days!!

Have a great weekend, everyone. I'll be resting (as usual).

Rest, rest, and more rest.

Day 13 of no running. Boo! Hiss!

My hip still feels off. It is still swollen. I've been to the doctor and had x-rays and an MRI. On Tuesday, I go back and, until then, I'm not supposed to run. At that point, I will have been resting for over two weeks.

Gah!

I keep telling myself that this time off is important. Obviously, since I'm injured, I can't run. But more than that, this time off is giving the un-injured parts of my body a rest as well. It has also been a chance for me to do some more concentrated cross-training. I'm a little limited in what I can do, so I've been focusing on weight workouts that don't stress my hip. Strong upper body, here I come!

I believe -- I have to believe -- that this forced rest is positive. After my hip heals and I return to running, I'll be back feeling stronger and refreshed from the rest. As I think back over the past few years, I see that I've basically been training with little-to-no-rest since two weeks after my son was born, two-and-a-half years ago.

Sure, I've had weeks of reduced running but I haven't truly taken a running break. An injury was bound to happen, I suppose.

So, here I am now. Injured. But looking at it as forced rest. A necessary evil.

It had better yield good results!

Have a good weekend, everyone. Thanks for reading.

The crazy runner.

So, here we are. Day 10 of no running. Ten days. No running.

Ten. Days. Of. No. Running.

Ten days of thinking non-stop about my ridiculous hip injury and how it means no running for the foreseeable future. 

In other words, ten days of me going crazy.

Yes, I admit it. I've gone straight-up crazy. Straight-up injured-runner crazy, that is. And injured-runner crazy is a very, well, special, kind of crazy.

Truth.

Injured-runner crazy makes one hyper-aware of all the glorious running that one is missing. And in that hyper-awareness is the knowledge that the rest of the world is still out there, running.

And, believe me. Everyone is running. 

Really. They are. Everyone, everywhere. Even non-runners are running. Couch potatoes are halfway to 5K and over-the-moon happy about it. Everyone is running. And injured-runner craziness tells me that they are not just running, but they are having the Best. Freaking. Times. Of. Their. Lives. They are practically frolicking. 

Everyone is running frolicking-good runs.

And long. Oh, those runners are out there running for miles and miles and miles. With glee. Glee! Everyone, everywhere is running the Longest. Runs. Of. Their. Lives. With so much freaking glee!

And no pain. 

Those runners? Running their joyful/long/fast/what-have-you runs? Yeah, they are doing it without pain. Without a single ounce of pain. They are running super-human speeds and distances known heretofore only to Dean Karnazes and they are doing it all with glee and no pain!

EVERYONE IS RUNNING!

Except for me.

And therein lies the craziness. 

I can't run. And all I see all around me is runners, running. I want to be them. I want to be out there gleefully running 18 hilly miles at 10K pace while pushing a 35lb kid in a stroller -- or whatever the heck those fit, uninjured runners are up to today. I want to be doing it. I don't want to be resting. Or icing. Or compressing. Or elevating. And I certainly don't want to be waiting for an MRI. And then waiting for the follow-up.

But I am. I am doing all of those things I don't want to do, which means I am not running.

And it is driving me crazy.

I know it is for the best and I know whining about it is about as unattractive as it gets. I can't help it. 

Because, you see, I've gone straight-up injured-runner crazy. Please bear with me. I'm sure I won't be this brand of crazy forever. 

At some point my hip will heal and I will run again. And the crazy runner will give way to the happy runner once again. At least I hope so!

Keep your fingers crossed . . . 

Silence is . . .

. . . well, it just is.

And it is what's been going on around here. I haven't had it in me to post -- everything I've thought about writing has been just not quite right. So murky have things become since the marathon bombings. 

Yes, I'm still running. And still focusing on what's wonderful.

And, yeah, I've gone on a few runs for Boston:

http://instagram.com/felicepd

In fact, I've had several good runs and my half marathon recovery has gone well. I'm ready for what's to come -- including marathon training this summer. 

But, writing about running hasn't happened. Like I said, it has all seemed not quite right. So, instead of writing here I've turned to blog silence. 

I'm shaking it off, though. Silence may be golden and all that but it makes for a crummy blog! Crummy, crummy. And who wants a crummy blog? Not me, that's for sure. 

So, I'm off to shake off the crummy! Thanks for stopping by.

Focusing on what's wonderful.

Running is wonderful. Even -- perhaps, especially -- amid the awful.

I'm choosing to focus on the wonderful.

My first marathon.

Pre-race with my 2 year old.

Pregnant running.

Racing with my almost 3 year old.

Jingle Bell run with Jen, Bridget and Janis.

Joyful running.

Winter Series with Amanda, Suzy, Janis and Bridget.

Future running buddy for sure!

High-fives from my little guy in the half marathon.

First half marathon with Janis, Bridget and Amanda.

Mother's Day race.

Boilermaker with Elisa and Bridget.

Refreshment after the Schroon Lake half.

More high-fives from my little guy!

Love the NJ Marathon group!!!

Boilermaker with Bridget, Sheila and Amanda.

Strong Running Mamas at the Mohawk-Hudson half marathon.

Finishing the half!

Enjoying the post-race moment with my boys.

Future marathoner?

Strong Running Mamas in NYC -- happy and ready to run.

Still a happy runner.

Still sad about the Boston Marathon bombings.

But still -- always -- a happy runner.

Another "not racing."

But this time, it isn't because of an injury.

I'm not racing tomorrow even though I've long had plans to run a turkey trot. At first, I'd planned to run a local turkey trot with friends. Our plan was to stay local for Thanksgiving this year and so I would run a 10K to start the day. Superstorm Sandy changed everything and now we're headed to Long Island for the holiday instead.

So I found a 5 mile turkey trot on Long Island that I'd run several years ago. But, unfortunately, registration closed before I got a chance to get myself together and register. You snooze, you lose. I snoozed and lost.

No turkey trot for this happy runner.

Still happy, though. I'll map out a run and head out tomorrow morning anyway. The weather is supposed to be perfect so why not?

Are you running a turkey trot tomorrow? Just running on your own? 

Have fun whatever you do!

Just go easy on the mashed taters.

Happy Thanksgiving!

~ Felice

Lessons from Danell Leyva.

Last night, I watched the Olympics men's gymnastics individual all-around finals and I was struck by something that I am 100% going to strive to apply to my running.

Danell Leyva rocked out on his floor routine at the start of the competition. One rotation later, he had to tackle the pommel horse. 

Unfortunately, it was more like the pommel horse tackled him. 

He had a poor routine that garnered a low score. It looked like he was out of the run for a medal. He was so low in the standings. He had to feel defeated.

He did not give up.

Somehow, someway, he shook off his "catastrophic" pommel horse routine and moved on, scoring well in each of the following rotations and moving up to claim the bronze medal.

He went from a low-low to the high of being an Olympic medalist!

Believe me, I know I'm not ever going to win an Olympic medal. But I still can learn from Danell. And, I bet, so can you.

He did not give up.

How bad must it have appeared after that pommel horse routine? How horrible must he have felt? How many doubts about himself must he have had?

Plenty bad. Plenty horrible. Plenty doubts.

I'm just guessing.

He did not give up.

So what did I learn from Danell? Well, if a 20-year-old can find a way not to crumble under pressure after almost certain failure, then I -- you know, with all the worldly wisdom that comes with age and motherhood -- should not crumble after one lousy race, one lousy run, or one lousy mile.

There is no reason to let past mistakes lead to future failures. A lousy run doesn't mean I've lost my endurance. A lousy mile repeat doesn't mean I've lost my speed. A lousy race doesn't mean my PRs are all behind me.

If I trust my training and trust my abilities, I can rise above poor performances and keep on going. 

In other words, I will not give up.

I've been feeling off ever since my crummy performance at the Boilermaker in early July. August will be my month to shake off that feeling and focus on my training and upcoming races. The Boilermaker will be forgotten.

Have you had to work hard to move on after lousy races? What worked best for you?

Thanks for stopping by!

~ Felice

Who's the winner?

Not me, that's for sure. See, I've been as sick as a cat lately. ("Sick as a cat?" You think it's "sick as a dog," right? Well, I don't know about dogs. I do know about cats and I know that they -- or, at least, my cat -- get sick Every. Single. Day. so I'm going with "sick as a cat.")

Yup, sick as a cat. It's just been awful. So, I'm behind. Behind on everything. I've had to scramble to finish some freelance work, I've missed my scheduled runs, my house is a mess, and I haven't blogged. Well, that's what happens, I guess.

At least now I'm getting to the blog.

And good thing, because I have a Bob Harper Kettlebell DVD winner to announce! Yay!

Using random.org, I chose a winner from all of your entries (you guys really wanted to win this one!) and the winner is . . .


Catey from Losing It 


Congratulations, Catey! Send me an email at felicehalf at yahoo dot com so you can get going with the kettlebells!

Now, I've got to get back to doing something about those piles of laundry and dishes and the toys that are everywhere. So, have a good day, everyone. I hope to be back with more running stuff tomorrow!

~ Felice

Quickie

I'm a bit at the end of my rope with my computer. It still is barely working -- I get about three minutes at a time on it before something goes haywire and I have to shut down, try to figure out what is wrong and run yet another time-sucking system scan. Only to learn that, yes, of course, I have another virus.

It's lots and lots of fun.

So, I haven't been posting. And I haven't been commenting. My computer won't open blogger, or google reader, or yahoo. Forget about Facebook.

Fortunately, I have a free moment on Owen's computer. And, instead of productively researching the root of my computer problems, I'm blogging. Of course! It is very important to let the internets know that I am alive and not ignoring anyone. My computer just hates me, that's all.

But on the positive side of life --

I had a great 4 mile run yesterday where I gained a new appreciation for hills. Um, why didn't anyone tell me that hills were going to be H.A.R.D. when running with a little bun in the oven?

Holy. Mackeral.

All I know is that if hills are this hard now when I've gained about 3lbs, what are they going to feel like when I've gained 13? 23? 33?

I probably won't find out because my guess is I'll be walking up them by the time I get to 13. I mean, wow. They take my breath away. And I'm normally a hill lover!

So that's running. And my computer news.

I hope you all are having a great week! I wish I could read all about it. Sigh . . .

~ Felice

Five things Friday, ep. 14.

1. Today started off crummy. Totally crummy. Conal woke up super early and was super hungry (I think he must be going through a growth spurt because he ate a good dinner and had a snack before bed so he shouldn't have been so hungry. But he was.). I gave him something to eat and crossed my fingers that he would go back to sleep. No such luck! We ended up battling a bit, which is never fun, but now things are fine. I hope the rest of the day is better than this morning!
2. A few people have signed up for my group! Yay! Can't wait to get started with that.
3. Yesterday's post was a bit of this: “To change one’s life: Start immediately. Do it flamboyantly. No exceptions.” ~William James. I guess I actually follow the advice of some of those quotes that I like.
4. I felt so sad for poor Joannie Rochette. I can't imagine what she must have been going through but that girl skated her heart out and I was so happy that she went away with the bronze.
5. Yay for sunny Fridays!!!

Have a great weekend, everyone!

~ Felice

PS: You still have a few more days to enter the Eggland's Best giveaway. Check it out here.

I am not invincible.

I thought that I was.

I don't catch colds because I run. I have tons of energy because I run. I'm so healthy that those kids with the mucusy faucets for noses can't touch me because I run.

Oh, such foolery.

This weekend, I learned that, no, I am not invincible. Running may rock, but it can't protect me at all times. This weekend, I came down with a . . . cold.

I am grateful that I made it for this long without contracting anything. But, man. I wanted to get through the entire cold-and-flu season of 2009-2010 unscathed. Oh, well. It was only a matter of time, really. Last week, almost everyone I saw was either sick, getting over "something" or on the verge of coming down with "something."

I felt my "something" coming on late Friday afternoon. So what did I do? I didn't run, that's what I didn't do. Instead, I cross-trained. Looking back, a run may have helped me ward off the cold, but maybe not. Saturday's awesome run surely helped keep the cold from exploding and, today, even after a crappy night's sleep last night, I don't feel too bad. I shouldn't complain. But when you have this grand idea that you are invincible, and then you learn that you are not, well . . . it crushes you a little. Just a little.

So, that's that. Wha, wha. I feel 90% today so let's consider this cold thing behind us. Common cold? I'm done with you!

Have a great week, everyone! I've got a fleece-rific giveaway over here, so please check it out!

~ Felice

No stride

I couldn't find my stride last night on the treadmill. No matter what I did -- speed up, slow down -- I couldn't get it right. My breathing was off, my legs were funky. In the end, I managed only 3.5 not-so-great miles before calling it quits.

The best part of the run is that I figured out that time on the treadmill goes much faster when you are listening to good music. Why it has taken me all these years to learn this, I have no idea. Now I know. And knowing is half the battle, right?

Eh, big deal. Some runs aren't great. That's just the way it is. Fortunately, there's always tomorrow. In my case, today. I'll get it today. I'm up, I'm at 'em, I've got a busy day ahead. A run will be in there and it will be better than yesterday's run because I say so!

Hope you all have a great day on tap!

~ Felice

PS: Don't forget about my cereal giveaway!

Better.

So, no lie, last week was a tough one for me. Who knows what was up -- it was just tough all around. I had the cruddy treadmill run and then I sorta crumbled under the weight of my own insecurities and doubts. It wasn't limited to my running, unfortunately. I had plenty of doubts related to the rest of my life, too. I'm going to chalk it up to a bad week.

Please don't think I'm all Debbie Downer all the time! This is, after all, The Happy Runner blog.

After writing my post on Thursday, I felt like a weight had been lifted. Just saying what had been going on was liberating and your encouraging and supportive comments totally buoyed my spirits. And, I admit, your comments made me realize even more just how ridiculous it is to compare oneself to others.

I met a deadline and had a nice evening with Owen and Conal on Friday, and went for a nice run, finished decorating the tree and had some delicious Japanese food on Saturday. All good.

And the frosting on this gingerbread cookie of a good weekend? I received an awesome package of running goodies in the mail from Jill (onelittletrigirl) at Finishing is Winning. I won her giveaway a little while ago and it was as good as advertised!

Check out what she sent:

Who's the lucky runner now? Me! Me! Yup, I am. (It has taken all of my willpower not to rip open the Pretzel Slims and eat them all.)

Thanks, Jill! I love it!!

Hope you all are enjoying the weekend!

~ Felice

AND PS: Don't forget about my winter motivation booster giveaway over here!

Buggin' out.

We have chaos on all fronts here in Happy Runner-ville. First, we're headed to Long Island on Wednesday to celebrate Thanksgiving with my husband's family. We'll head back home late Friday night, probably arriving early Saturday morning. We won't have much time to relax when we get home because we're then hosting a huge surprise 40th anniversary party for my parents that night. We're expecting about 50 people! Needless to say, I'm bugging out.

On top of that, my toddler has decided that now is a good time to throw some tantrums. As in: hour-long tantrums. Oh, and to skip his naps, too. He thinks that's the winning formula.

It all makes me want to just drop everything and head out for a run.

But that would be irresponsible and, in the case of leaving my child at home alone, illegal. Don't worry -- I would never, ever, ever, ever do such a thing. But there are times when I'm tempted to just walk out that door.

Instead, here I am. And, lucky me, I got some good news today. I have a new project! A few weeks ago, when I finished my last one, I wrote about how nervous I was that I wouldn't get any new work. Well, no worries. A past client contacted me to help them on their new brochure. Yay! I'm relieved.

Of course, that means a bunch of deadlines which can only be met if my little guy behaves. So, I'll be praying to the Good Naps and No Tantrums gods for a few weeks. Forgive me if I seem a little distracted . . .

Hope you all had a great weekend! Happy Monday --

~ Felice

PS: Oh, and hey! I have a new review and giveaway over at my other site. Bodyshaping . . .

Running again.

After the rotten post-run migraine on Sunday, I didn't run all week. I was feeling nervous and so I decided to go for some cross-training. I did more lunges, squats and push ups last week than I've done in ages. And my body has been feeling it!

Today, though, I got back in the running shoes and went out for a relaxing 5.5 mile run. It was GREAT! Don't get me wrong: I was still quite nervous after the run, thinking that I might get another migraine. But, I took the time for a proper cool-down then I ate my usual handful of raw almonds and dried cranberries, followed by a glass of water and a cup of coffee. I also took an Advil sinus because I needed to cover myself, just in case.

It all worked and I'm pleased. It felt terrific to be out there running again. Sure, cross-training is important and enjoyable but, really, it isn't running. Nothing compares to a run!

And with that, I'm off to enjoy my Saturday evening and hope that you enjoy yours, too. I'm also sending some good vibes to everyone racing tomorrow - I'm rooting for you!!!

Have a great rest of the weekend, everyone!

~ Felice

Silver linings.

So, it's Tuesday. Sometimes, a Tuesday is just a Tuesday. No need to get worked up about it, because it's just a Tuesday.

Tuesday. Not the first day of the week like Monday. Not the middle like Wednesday. Not almost Friday like Thursday. And certainly not TGIF-ish like Friday, or weekend-y like Saturday and Sunday. Just Tuesday.

Gray and dreary, yet warm enough for another shorts run.

Certainly, a silver lining.

And you know what else could constitute a silver lining, like if you were really desperate for one and you really stretched the definition? Well, I'll tell you. Team Strands is seeking athletes to sponsor. As in, runners. Runners that they can give money to. So those runners can run.

Who's in???

Before you start spending that money, check out what you need to do. They sent me a press release about it so I figured I would share the info. Here it is:

Corvallis, OR, November 9, 2009— Team Strands is accepting applications for athlete sponsorship for the 2010 calendar year. Interested athletes should submit a running resume with a one-page sponsorship proposal.

The resume should include, but is not limited to:

• Running Background
• Personal Bests
• Race Highlights
• Tentative 2010 Race Schedule

The proposal should highlight why you believe you would be a good brand advocate for Strands.com. It would be helpful to include information about your level of involvement in the running community, and your “reach” online with social networking sites and blogs. Preference will be given to athletes willing to relocate to Corvallis. Please indicate whether you would be willing to move in your sponsorship proposal.

You must be willing to share your training and interact with the Strands.com online community, so familiarity with Strands.com is a must. If you would like to apply for sponsorship and haven’t set up a free Strands profile at http://www.strands.com, please do so before applying.

When you have completed your running resume and one-page proposal, please send an email with both documents attached to teamstrands@strands.com by December 15, 2009. We will begin notifying athletes starting January 1, 2010.

ABOUT - Strands.com is an online training log and social networking site where athletes share their training, connect with friends and teammates, and streamline their online activities. The site is operated by Strands Labs, Inc. For more information on Strands Labs, Inc, visit http://corp.strands.com/.

-END-

So there you have it. A Tuesday silver lining. Kinda. Sure, they say preference will be given to people who relocate to Oregon. That doesn't mean they are only going to sponsor runners who move there. So, even if you don't want to relocate, you might want to give it a shot!

Just don't forget about me when you're all kinds of famous.

~ Felice

Get shorty.

November in upstate New York is usually chilly, with an average high for the month of 48 degrees. Today, though, is sunny and the forecast calls for a high of 65. Yay! This will make two days in a row: Yesterday was sunny and warm with temps in the high 60s. Yes, I ran in shorts!

Running in shorts in November is just a real treat for this runner. Last week, I was bundled up in running pants and a jacket. To wear my favorite shorts and a t-shirt made me feel a little like a kid out there. I felt fast! Not that I was, of course, I just felt that way.

Speaking of fast . . .

As I was running up a moderately steep hill yesterday, I saw a guy up ahead of me on his bike. A cyclist, slick cycling outfit and all. I ran at a steady pace, gaining on him at every step. As I got closer to him (I was on the opposite side of the road, running facing traffic), he must have heard me (am I really that loud??) because he looked back at me and then he tried to speed up. I just kept running, quickly passing him and putting space between us.

Until we crested the hill when he flew by me on the downhill. But he was coasting.

The whole thing just made me chuckle a little because he definitely did not like getting passed on that hill. After all, he was on a bike. Now, I'm no cyclist so I have no idea if it is easier to run or ride uphill. But it would seem to me that using a two-wheeled machine would give you an advantage over just using your body.

Anyway, passing Mr. Coaster, along with being able to run in shorts and a t-shirt, made me feel pretty fleet of feet yesterday. What a way to end a great weekend (freshly highlighted hair, a dinner party, a birthday party, three great runs, re-arranged the family room, lots of fun . . . )!

I hope to feel fast again today. I'll be running in shorts, for sure!

Happy Monday, everyone!

~ Felice