My Running Hopes

I have been toying with a crazy idea since yesterday, and it's consuming me.

I want to run another half-marathon.

Yes, silly, I know.

As if losing weight isn't a challenge enough, I thought it would be great if I could get into a regular running routine and run a race or two. In 2002 and 2003 I had ran several 5K and 10K events, culminating in running the Half at the Vancouver International Marathon in May 2003, and it was the time of my life! I was crazy-fit, logging in up to 20 miles per week for training. I felt fast and strong, ready to conquer the world. I was beaming with accomplishment every week.

I want that feeling again.

Mind you, haven't as so much stepped foot on the hot pavement yet, logging my miles on a treadmill, but I'm determined. I'm armed with my trusty Hal Higdon's Novice Half-Marathon guide, a few new ones for comparison, and re-reading my running bible, The Complete Book of Running for Women by Claire Kowalchik. I've even got a 2010 year-at-a-glance to figure out when the races are and how they fit in the training schedule.

Yes, I know, I've written before about running here and here but I'm serious this time....I think.

My Goal: run the Half at the Vancouver International Marathon on May 2, 2010

The Plan:

- buy new shoes (soooo important!)
- loosely follow an 8-week 10K training schedule starting Nov 1, 2009
- follow a 12-week Half-Marathon training schedule starting Feb 7, 2010

Training is hinging on the fact that I can afford new shoes. My current pair of runners have definitely seen 500 miles, even though they look pretty good for being so loved. But it's the inside cushioning that's so vital for running, and it's wear isn't apparent from the outside. This will probably set me back $150-175 a new pair of New Balance runners (LOVE them!). They have obviously discontinued my beloved 1022's, so I'm going to have to try another model. I'm not a heavy pronator, even though I have really flat feet, and if anything I suponate (roll outwards) and sometimes twist my ankle when I walk! So I need cushioning with neutral gait, without a stiff arch. Did you understand my Greek? LOL

So, there. The goal is finally in writing. That's a start, isn't it?

I feel the endorphins kicking in already!

Flash Mob Alert: Oprah's Season Opener!

This is so cool....I love flash mobs!

I posted one back in April, at a Belgian train station to the Sound of Music -- click here to view. Love it! As Oprah says...

Amazing...just wanna makes you get up and dance! Kudos to the producers of Oprah for staging the world's largest flash mob of 21,000 strong!

I Gotta Feeling...woo hoo hoo...

Being on Maternity Leave

I'm coming up on Month 9 of my maternity leave and although I'm enjoying my time with my little boy, I can't help but start counting down the clock until I return to work on January 4, 2010.

There's something about being distant from my coworkers that leaves me with pangs of jealously. I think of it this way: those folks I worked with day in and day out, even though they aren't officially family, actually are, since, when you think about it, we spend more time together than we do with our spouses. So, to be on maternity leave, and not get any news of how they're doing, what they're up to, how their kids/husbands/girlfriends are doing, leaves me jealous of those that know what's going on.

And I'm not talking gossip. I despise gossip, especially when there's enough office politics to go around already. No, I'm talking hard news.

Case#1: I left on my maternity leave Nov/Dec 2008. By June, my coworker tells me via Facebook she's getting married in November. When I left, she was single, and when she told me she was getting married, I didn't even know she had been dating anyone.

Case#2: I just found out one of them is pregnant again. She just returned to work 3 months ago. When I go back, she might be leaving....or already gone. Again, I don't know details. The person who told me thought I already knew. Nope.

Case#3:The one coworker who sits beside me and spends a bit of time chatting with me is apparently having a lunch thrown for him this month. You'd think he'd told me what's up with that. Again, no word directly from the horse's mouth...same said person in Case #2 tells me this news too, as if I knew what she was talking about. I've since asked for clarification from both of them. No reply, yet, of course.

So, as I'm living the isolated life on this side of the fence, my coworkers world continues to revolve without me. I wonder if I'll even recognize them when I return. I sure won't recognize the lives their leading now.