Top Twenty Kicks...

Some of y'all have seen interested in the "101 Kicks in the Butt" that I mentioned, and I signed up for a newsletter and they sent a link to it. I am not sure if it will work, but if not, here are the top twenty. This came from May 07' magazine.... Here is a link to the rest-

101 Kicks in the Butt

You have 100 reasons for losing motivation to run. But we can top 'em with tips, inspiring quotes, and more. Pick your fix. Repeat as necessary
By Calvin Hennick


1. CREATE A BLOG where you post your daily mileage, then give out the Web address to your friends and family. Do you really want Aunt Ellen to ask why you skipped your four-miler on Wednesday?

2. MAMA, GET A NEW PAIR OF SHOES. Two-time Olympian Shayne Culpepper puts new gear she receives as an elite athlete to good use. "It's fun to break in a new pair of shoes," she says. "Sometimes that's enough to get me excited."

3. RUNNING COMMENTARY "Running is a big question mark that's there each and every day. It asks you, 'Are you going to be a wimp, or are you going to be strong today?'" --Peter Maher, two-time Olympic marathoner from Canada

4. GO SOFT. It's hard to stay motivated with shinsplints, so get off the pavement for a few days and run on a cross-country course or unpaved bike paths.

5. LOOK TO THE PAST Emil Zatopek, who won four Olympic golds in his career, was a tough-as-nails athlete known for his intense training methods, such as running in work boots. Competing with a gland infection and against his doctor's orders, the Czech won three distance events--including the marathon--at the 1952 Helsinki Olympics. That stuffy nose doesn't seem quite so bad now, does it?

6. FORGET TIME. Shane Bogan, who coaches distance runners in the Washington, D.C./Baltimore area, advises leaving your watch at home once in a while. "It's liberating not to be worried about pace," Bogan says.

7. SIGN UP NOW for a winter marathon in a warm state. Every training mile you log takes you closer to that winter getaway in toasty Phoenix, Florida, or Las Vegas.

8. THINK FAST. The runners Christy Coughlin coaches in Wilmette, Illinois, always get a boost from this simple negative-splits workout: Run for 20 minutes as slowly as you want, then turn around and run home faster. "The long warmup helps you feel great and run faster on the way back," says Coughlin.

9. GOOD-TO-GO PLAYLISTClassic Rock"Don't Stop Me Now," Queen"Break on Through," The Doors"Gimme Shelter," Rolling Stones"Come Together" the Beatles"What Do You Do for Money Honey," AC/DC

10. BLAZE A NEW PATH. "If you do the same runs all the time, it can beat you down," says Olympian Alan Culpepper. GPS systems work great for mapping new routes. Or check out favoriterun.com or usatf.org/routes, which use Google Maps to let you plan and save routes.

11. FILL THE TUB with hot water, then head out for a three-miler on a frigid morning. The sooner you get back, the hotter your bath is.

12. EVERY MILE YOU RUN burns roughly 100 calories. Think of that next six-miler as two slices of pizza.

13. RUNNING COMMENTARY "No one can say, 'You must not run faster than this or jump higher than that.' The human spirit is indomitable." --Sir Roger Bannister, the first man to run a sub-four-minute mile

14. THE BOSTON MARATHON is a year away. Think you can get there? (Go to www.baa.org for qualifying times.)

15. RACE ODD DISTANCES FOR AN INSTANT PR.Kennedy Drive 8-K, San Francisco, May 13Run for Alex 2-miler and 5-miler, Bentleyville, Pennsylvania, June 2Six In The Stix II, Newport, New Hampshire, June 9Quad-City Times Bix 7-miler, Davenport, Iowa, July 28Falmouth Road Race 7-miler, Falmouth, Massachusetts, August 12Bigfork Valley Challenge 4.5-miler, Bigfork, Minnesota, September 8

16. READ THIS The Loneliness of the Long-Distance Runner, a short story by Alan Sillitoe, tells the tale of a rebellious youth in a reformatory who runs in solitude and makes a stand against a system he doesn't believe in. You'll have new appreciation for the power of solo runs.

17. PLAY IN THE STREET. Skip a dreaded track workout for a fartlek (Swedish for "speed play") session. After 10 minutes of easy jogging, run hard between two telephone poles, then slow down until you pass three. Then see if you can get to the traffic light before it changes, followed by a jog to the next mailbox. There are no set rules, so make it up as you go along.

18. THE PILE OF DISHES in the sink can wait till the sun goes down. Your tempo run can't.

19. RUN AT LUNCH. Daniel Sheil, a marathon coach in Portland, Oregon, recommends lunchtime runs for two reasons: (1) You get your workout in before the day gets away from you; (2) You get a midday break from work stress.

20. RUNNING COMMENTARY "The more I run, the more I want to run, and the more I live a life conditioned and influenced and fashioned by my running. And the more I run, the more certain I am that I am heading for my real goal: to become the person I am." --George Sheehan, M.D., beloved former RW columnist

101 Kicks in the Butt

I read an interesting article in Runner's World Magazine this morning that was titled "101 Kicks in the Butt!" which came at a good time, as I should have been running instead of reading this morning. I would share a link with you to it, but the article is not online. Anyway, a few of the kicks hit me where they were intended, and I am off to get in my short run/walk during my lunch today. I did get a chance to sign up for a weekly newsletter they have, and apparently a way to receive that article in a soft format, so that I can share some of those with you. Until then, my favorite: #36 "It's Spring! Why are you even reading this? You should be motivated just by the fact that you're not forced to run on a treadmill." I found it interesting that the #1 Kick/Tip was to create a blog. I am also amazed at how many of these tips/Kicks I have already learned by joining MM. I hope you all are having a great week, and if not, it is not too late to get back on track...... Is it just me, or does the guy on the cover of the magazine have an uncanny resemblance to me!? Ha! Okay, maybe 20 years ago.....

"Ich Bin Ein Marathoner"

Forgive me for maligning a quote from JFK. It looks as if I am not the only one who was motivated, convicted, and encouraged by Mark last week. ( I hope you will post your outline of the speech, Mark) Anyway, I think this is the most sore I have felt since starting the MM. I swam at Baptist yesterday, wogged my 50 minutes this am, and got some biking in Sunday, and my Monday and Tuesday run. Whew! I know however, this week I have been way more compliant than any other week. Whenever I started the "oh, no, another distraction" type thoughts, I reminded myself that I am a marathoner now, and pushed myself to do what I needed to do. Tomorrow I will rest knowing that I have done what I was suppose to do this week, and hopefully I will not be so sore Saturday morning. Thanks for all you guys doing the great blogging! YOU ARE ALL MARATHONERS!

Getting Pumped Up...

Well, the run wasn't my highlight, but the motivational speech by Mark was awesome. My shins were yelling at me before I made it up the first hill, and I struggled the rest of the way. I was going to buy one of those stretch things when Mark and I were at Fleet Feet, but I knocked the whole display over, and got my free t-shirt and got out of there before I knocked something else over. With that said, I taking a hard look at changing my beliefs, and "Gettin' My Mind Rite" as the blogger "Trepidatious" blogged so eloquently in the blog entry: http://owhit.blogspot.com/2007/03/lessons-from-cool-hand-luke.html ...Anyway, I have to get more consistent each day, take it one day at a time, and stick to the plan. You guys are really getting me pumped up, and just reading the comments and blogs made me find Kelvin's blog, who somehow eluded me. He is hillarious. I think he changed the name of his blog or something, and I missed it. Anyway, if not, let me give Kelvin's latest blog by clicking here. Well, I am off to see Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles with my 6 year old son, and then out with him for a guys night without the gurls. Keep up the great blogging!

Finally Friday...

It has been a hectic week, but finally get a respite with Friday. Too many balls to juggle. Just for fun I thought I'd see how much I would pace while cutting the grass using my iPod Nike+ thing. I don't have a huge yard, but going back and forth with a push mower was a lot farther than I would have guessed. In a quick one hour of mowing, the thing registered 2.5 miles. Of course the pace was pretty steady an slow, but I am counting this as an extra XT make up day after I saw this. I wonder what kind of mileage I would clock just keeping up with my 4 and 6 year old?
I look forward to seeing all of you tomorrow. For those of you that have been blogging regularly, thanks for the encouraging words. Keep up the great work!

No More Lurking...

I have been quite the busy little wogger the last couple of weeks, and think I may be finally getting over some sinus/ear crud that has been keeping me down. Not to make more excuses, but I think that "Spring Break" is false advertising by the secret society of school teachers. Anyway, I haven't had much time to do much more than "lurk" at others' blogs and glean some tips and encouragment without dishing any out myself. I did however spend several hours using the Google Reader device to add most all of the blogs to my reader page. Apparently I am not the only one who has been remiss at consitently blogging. For those of you that have blogged a lot, thanks for letting me hang out and get some encouragement. I also spent a great deal of time looking at hotel accomodations in the windy city. All I can say is YIKES! I was hoping that my wife and I could have a getaway weekend in my old corporate stomping grounds, but it looks like I'll be looking for atleast one other roomate unless money starts growing in flower beds I just tilled up during my XT yesterday. Thanks to Steph for the plug on the multi-use trails in Ridgeland and for the volunteering at the "Lose the Training Wheels" event. No doubt she got her running in last week. Also, a hearty congrats to everyone who competed in the St. Patty's Day 5K. I would have love to have run in it, but I was afraid I would post such a ridiculous time that I would miss the 9am meeting. I am looking forward to a full week of compliance with my schedule and seeing all of you Saturday!

Looking forward to Saturday!

What a great Friday, despite being home most of yesterday with my 6 year old with a stomach bug and sinus infection. What a great start for Spring Break... Anyway, I have been on the disabled list for a while due to a nagging ear infection, and am SO looking forward to the run/walk tomorrow. Chicago or Bust!