Couch to 5K Program

Oh well, it only took me months to post this...

But here it is, a link to a great running program, similar to the one I started. Like copyright infringement similar. I highly recommend it and apologize for not posting it sooner.

Couch to 5K.

What I like about the couch to 5k program is that it`s simple. You can run for distance or for time. I like running for time, and, like running for distance, time-running has it`s drawbacks, but the drawbacks only become more evident as you get `better` at running. So enjoy the bliss of ignorance now new runners! Because basically running is a lot like deciding to be Sisyphus and push a giant boulder, that would be your ass, up a mountain over and over again.

Oh shoot. I`m doing it again. Making running sound bad or like torture. That`s only because my runs have been so hard lately. If it isn`t a flu, a virus or accidental lactose intolerance then it`s an IBS flareup, all of which makes running difficult. Complicating matters was a temporary loop of comparison and the voice in my head going into over-drive, demanding that I run 10k during IBS flareup so I didn`t lose my `race pace`.

But all of that is how not to run. How to run is a lot easier than I tell myself it is. Stick with an easy, gentle pace, go crazy when it feels good and stop when it hurts. That`s the best advice I can give to a new runner, and myself.

Is it time to shave?

Probably, yes. But since it's winter time I'll keep it simple, defcon 1, the capri shave. Defcon 5 is reserved for sexxy times, Dr. appts and bathing suit season.

Seaweed Salad Recipe

Oh sweet, abandoned blog. I apologize for neglecting you. But I come bearing presents: food related presents to be exact and what could be better than that?

Every Saturday or Sunday, I cook big batches of food for the week. This week I am craving Asian inspired flavours and ingredients. I'm not feeling 100% and when that's the case I usually have to work my as off not to eat a lot of sugar, but at the same time, who wants to spend all their mental energy fighting themselves?

Not me!

So I've found the perfect compromise, for me, anyway. Seaweed salad. I make mine a tad spicy (helps me control my appetite) a little sweet (the rice wine vinegar does that nicely) and a little, well fishy (that would be the seaweed). Together the flavours combine like magic and the best part is -- this salad is so easy to make, it takes 20 minutes, TOPS.

Ingredients

* 3/4 ounce dried Wakame seaweed (you can use it whole or cut. I get mine at Fairway on Quadra or the Japanese market on Shelborune, super cheap, too)
* 3 tablespoons soy sauce
* 1 teaspoon brown sugar
* 2 tablespoons Asian sesame oil
* 1/2 teaspoon minced garlic
* 1 teaspoon finely grated peeled fresh ginger
* 1 apple
* 2 scallions, thinly sliced
* 3 hot red peppers, thinly sliced and diced
* 3 tablespoons rice wine vinegar (not seasoned)
* 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro (optional imho)

Method
Soak seaweed in water for 5 minutes. You can cut the uncut wakame in wide strips of 1/2 inches. Drain the water. In a bowl, mix and stir together soy sauce, sesame oil, sugar and ginger. Stir it till the sugar is completely dissolved. Now cut the apple into pieces of say 1/4 inches and add as a dressing along with seaweed, scallions, red peppers and cilantro. Toss and combine all the ingredients well. Sprinkle with sesame seeds and serve.

People Ruin Everything!

It's hard enough to get out there, then you have to deal with weather, an uncooperative body, clothing malfunctions and... other runners.

I've wanted to post about running pet peeves for a while now and I swear I'm not a curmudgeon, so I’ll balance out my karma by posting something positive next time. In the meantime, let’s be bitchy.

Shall we?

1. The Middle-Aged Running Posse

Stereotyping is bad sometimes, but let’s face it, this group is overly fond of sorbet coloured workout clothes, beading and group activities.

And who can blame them? Running in a group can be so motivational. No one gets left behind, the slowest person is kind of like the group mascot and everyone gets to whine and moan to a sympathetic audience. Gosh, a running posse is so great I can’t think of any drawbacks!

Oh wait. There is one teensy, tiny little problem with the Middle-Aged Running Posse. If you’re not one of them, good luck getting around them. This group runs four abreast and enjoy togetherness so much they resemble searchers sweeping the trail for a body, more than they do a running group. When you shout, “On your left,” they just can’t stand to be apart for even a second to let other, faster runners pass.

2. No one told me there was a casting call for the latest Lulu Lemon Ad Campaign!

Nothing is worse than crawling out of bed, scraping my hair back into a pony, pulling on some faded, smelly clothes and hitting the trails only to come upon beautifully turned out runners with long, bouncy ponytails, shorty shorts and the unmistakable scent of deodorant.

Who are these people? Did they come from the future? A future without cellulite and perspiration, where everyone is always freshly showered and they have toned legs that actually look great in running shoes?

If so, please tell me where the time machine is, I’m ready to embrace the future.

3. Sniping

We’re in a race. You have had 2, 5, 8 or 12 kilometers to pass me. Now, when we’re at the finish line, you look over at me with an ugly gleam in your eye and tell your kid, “Come on, we can do it. Let’s beat her!”

Fine. You win. You crossed two seconds before me. But really, I win. Cuz you’re still a douchebag.



4.The Gel-Pack Fanny-Belt for a 5 KM Race Guy

Really? Do you bring a fully loaded camping bag for your evening dog walk, too?

5. The Slow Lady who insists on starting in the sub 50 section of a 10K race

You take an hour and twenty minutes to finish and you mess up my time because I have to get around you and the nattering members of your middle-aged running posse at the start of every race.

If we all at least tried to start in a realistic estimation of our time to finish, then we’d all probably finish even faster because we wouldn’t have to climb over the people who are slower…. Just sayin’.

6. The Filth Pig

DON’T THROW YOUR GEL PACK or WATER BOTTLE ON THE GROUND DURING A RACE. You’re not that special just because you can run a sub 120. Also, I know it’s a race, and I know you’ve been training hard because you're starting to resemble Skelator but DO NOT PISS IN PUBLIC. Ever.

7. The Self-Righteous Runner

The truth is, I really am not too bothered by other people doing their thing. It's a pain in the ass for a minute, but I can put up with most anything and I have been guilty of a few things on the list when I was newer, tired or zoned out. (Especially the part about looking like a supermodel, happens all the time.) But my biggest pet peeve? The self-righteous runner!

They sneer at low(er) mileage runners and their efforts. They scoff at sneakers bought at chain stores. They glare at dogs on off-leash running trails. You tell them you ran four times last week, they one up you and say they ran four half marathons last week, barefoot, no Ipod, with a head cold.

So what are YOUR pet peeves perpetrated by other runners?

First Post-itis

Any blogger will tell you, the first post is always the hardest. You have to be witty, succinct and interesting and you have to hope someone will eventually find your blog interesting enough to read it.

Here goes!