What to do when your legs forget how to run...

Some days when my body hasn't quite recuperated from the punishment from the day before I swear my legs and brain are having some family style argument.  The last two runs legs are going, "You started it" and brain is going, "No you started it".  Then they refuse to agree on anything. 

Sunday it was as if my legs would not bend, no oil can.  Normally my footfalls are pretty quiet but when you can hear the foot slapping the ground louder than the Ipod something is amiss!  Then today the legs were wanting to sleep in and the effort involved in making them move was causing my respiratory system to act like we were sprinting.  Its weird that I just referred to myself as we..I know. 

This is certainly not the first time I have had a "tough" run but now having encountered them before I have a few strategies and thought I would share them.

1. The first thing I do is stop (and stop my Garmin of course) and do a little dynamic stretching.  I say dynamic or controlled ballistic because static stretching before a run has been scratched off the good for you list, but sometimes it is simply a case of cold muscles not ready.  A few minutes of dynamic stretching starts to get the blood moving and warm the muscles.  The following are a few articles on this...
Article 1 Ballistic/Dynamic vs Static Stretching
Article 2 Dynamic Stretching Routine Pre-Run

2.  If after diverting some blood to the muscles I continue on and find that I'm still having an awful/hard run I switch my run from whatever was planned to something else...for example...if I'm out doing sprints I will change it up and do an easy paced run, or if I am doing an easy paced run...increase my speed or switch to sprints. Just to get through it faster sprints...

3. For a long run sometimes its not possible to sprint, so then I break my run up into segments of walk run.  Running 16 miles straight when you feel like crap looks much better when its in 5.3 mile, 3 mile or even half mile segments with a walk period of 5 min, 2 min, 1 min respectively.  Small rests are best usually as running 16 is already a time consuming process and resting too long can cool down muscles too much...but small amounts of walking do a number of good things for the body...help with lactic acid buildup( especially good for the shin splint prone), allow for less mental fatigue, give some time to take in the beauty around you possibly giving a necessary kick start for the next segment, etc.

4. If the fatigue or malaise continues...pack it in.  Running while overly fatigued can lead to injury and its also possible that an unknown injury (or one your trying to ignore) is telling you..."hey buddy (imagine Jillian Michaels as your inner voice) maybe running right now is going to cause more damage than good". 

Picture Courtesy of lucyphoto.com

It is ok to not run when running is tearing your body down or when your just having a "bad" running day.  This is supposed to be fun and challenging but not to the extent where it becomes a negative force on your body...etc etc

(I am not a physician so any advice or comment is my own opinion from my experience as a runner...please do see your physician before you cannot run because pain is severe...this will save you months of rehab and possibly save the life of the other runners... as you run them over with your vehicle in frustration!)

May your next run not suck! :)

New Jersey Gardening-The Dreaming Phase

Seeing as I don't have enough on my plate...gotta squeeze enjoyment into every second...I have entered into the dreaming phase of my gardening year.  Seeing as the only thing in my garden at the moment is sage...a very hearty herb that is the first to grow and the last to wither...January begins the phase of gardening where anything is possible for the upcoming garden.  All the successes and failures get weighed into my dreaming and calculations begin for what I will tackle in this coming years garden. 

I decided that a greenhouse was the smartest addition to the new this year.  I did ask Santa to bring me one but he insisted that my husband's pleas for no greenhouse were more often and more desperate.   Silly really cause as my husband should know...once I get my mind on something it is almost impossible to change.  And anyway who wants to mow all that grass!

As we have not settled on our current house as our final house I figure I will go with something that isn't permanent and hopefully my father who is very handy will take pity on me and lend me a hand.


PVC based greenhouses seem to be a simple solution for a quick and inexpensive greenhouse. 

Picture from snapclamp.com

I also have been busy with the unfortunate result of Christmas in my office...thought I should update ...

Playoff football and my run to get in...Sunday funday!  Hope its a great day for all :)

Its very easy to be altruistic...even if you are short on time & money :)

I think in the New Year many people start thinking about how they can make the coming year a better one than the year before.  I have always wanted to be a person who volunteers their time and resources as I feel life has been very generous with me...but I've faced a few obstacles in the time and money department at not in any order :) 

So I thought I might share some of the ways I've been able to do something, even if it is small.

I use a goodsearch browser bar.  At their website goodsearch.com you can designate a charity after downloading their search bar.  Every time you search the advertisers donate to the charity you have chosen.  Additionally when you purchase items through the internet you can do it through their website and get extra toward your charity. 

You can also designate thehungersite.com as one of your homepages...and in similar fashion you can click a button & shop through them... advertisers donate every time you click and you can earn extra for shopping through their extensive listings.  Additionally there are many sellers on the site offering handmade unique gifts who come from impoverished areas throughout the world.

While in the past I haven't been able to donate much of my time because most of the things I've wanted to volunteer for weren't age appropriate for my children...they are older and there are many ways available to us this year.  On the LBI 18 mile run which is less crowded they were able to volunteer while I run...its a win-win because I look forward to seeing them and they had a blast cheering and handing out the gatorade and water. So this year I am am going to volunteer myself at one or more run.  If running isn't your thing...there are plenty of other opportunities....

If it is time that you have available...By visiting volunteermatch.com  you can find volunteer opportunities that fit all time/age/$ restrictions. 

And don't forget to volunteer in your community...there are so many ways in our communities to donate...donating surplus veggies from too many tomato plants to your local church, donating blood (visit redcross.org for locations), donating time at your local library (kid friendly), cleaning out your closet and donating to your local goodwill. 

There are so many ways to give...big and small...even during a recession..when its most needed!

And just so this post isn't all sappy and serious...my son told me this joke yesterday....

Lou commits to 500 miles!

Got my husband to do the mileage challenge, but did he really have a choice...I guess not. So he added it up and came up with 500! Yeah Lou!

Oh and I took a pic of my treadmill screen for evidence of my indoor gym run. Don't know why I didn't think of that before.  The gym was packed and I had to wait for a treadmill, but once I had it I figured I'd keep it for awhile.

Poorly taken picture of my treadmill screen....

Tackling tough topics...a story of truth and alliteration.

Being new to the blogging world I have made a few discoveries and have certain questions. I've learned that the more successful (most followed) blogs have lots of pictures. Are motivating and/or positive. Tend toward a central theme. And the people hosting them are all handsome and well put together. Every. Day. Ok so that may be an exaggeration, but it seems a good deal of primping is included. Well I barely have the time to write this sentence so please do forgive me if my blog/person is not handsome or well put together. I am going to put it out there, as it happens with as much honesty as my boundaries regarding shame will allow. Over the holiday season my craft room has become the resting place of most of the stuff that needs to be hidden because it requires too much time to put away properly. On top of that I have gone from one project to the next with the reckless abandon that holidays require. I've started some scrapbook pages, rushed through gift card holder making for bus drivers and trimmed ribbon onto my carpet. I know...it's awful.

So in true honest spirit here is what it looks like! I don't know if that's too much honesty but there it is.

I suffer from having an inability to enjoy cleaning...and even further I am able to drop it in favor of fun or laziness or just about anything really. But having said that, as a busy stay-at-home mom-wife-runner-small etsy store maker etc,etc, I benefit greatly from an organized clean home. Dastardly dilemma (more alliteration)! So as part of my agreement with myself to catch myself during wasting time I've begun the arduous task of organizing my crafting room...thereby presenting my presence with pleasant peaceful places.

How much honesty is too much to share?

Anyone else starting the organizing of a household room? Any tips?

Feel free to alliterate!

The Beginning of organizing my very large stamp collection...I was so excited when they developed the acrylic stamps as they do not take up nearly as much space...ie I can get more...but sometimes it is hard to find the right one when its called onto the field...

Seems like the water should be an easy one...however it has been floating around in different spots throughout my house for maybe 6 months or more...it's waiting to become beer someday... 

Last run of 2011..first run for my ticker!

At 11:00am on Dec 31st in New Jersey it probably should not be close to 60 degrees but today as I set out for my last run in 2011 it was. I can't imagine ending the year on a better note. The sun was shining and my injuries appear to be on the mend!!! 6 pain-free miles!!! What a wonderful thing. There is not much that is more frustrating to me (and I assume most runners) than having the will but not the health. But doing the right things, stretching, listening to the pain and stopping before it's bad, good nutrition, enough sleep, and meds when necessary...are what have helped me! There are some really helpful videos on runners world for itb stretches on a side note.

While I ran I thought about all the other times I passed those landmarks and how each run was a little different even though I had done that route so many times before. How lucky I felt and how grateful I am to have the opportunity...even on those crappy days where my legs felt like two lead refrigerators filled with scorpions.

My hope for the New Year is for people to realize the gifts they have and for those moments to be plentiful!!!

Have a happy and safe new year!!!

Working on New Items for Etsy

It's been so busy with the holidays and having kids home I haven't been creating new cards. I really love the creative process...which is a bit messy but always fun. I'm going through a simple is better phase and designed these cards with that in mind.