Deadspin: How Far Did Rocky Run?

Oh, Internet!  Ask and ye shall receive!

Over at Deadspin, someone created a route to determine how far Rocky would have run to hit all of the locations in the Rocky II training montage.

What’s always amused me about this scene is how absolutely little sense Rocky’s route makes: South Philly becomes North Philly becomes the Italian Market becomes North Philly again, and so on. Obviously, the montage isn’t meant to be taken seriously as an actual workout; it’s just a few scenes strung together so “Gonna Fly Now” can play and Rocky can finish at the top of the Art Museum steps.

Has the city not figured out that this would make an amazing ultramarathon?

RnR Philadelphia Half-Marathon Race Recap

It's been a while -- almost two months -- since I've posted.

I really didn't have it in me to write about my training.  When I'm not racing every weekend, the posts seem to blend together.  I abandoned my SmartCoach plan in July and, on most days, ran as much and as fast as I felt like.  It was the most pleasant training experience I've had.  

On Saturday, Stef and I went up to Philadelphia for the Rock 'n' Roll Half.  I had such a good time the last time I ran a race in Philadelphia (see what I did there?), I was looking forward to running in the city again.  The course was flat, covering the center city area and the Schuylkill River trail.  Before the race, Stef and I completed one of the items on my bucket list: running up the stairs of the Philadelphia Museum of Art -- Rocky style.

The view from the top is amazing.

I may not have been in shape to run a sub-2:00 race, but I kept telling myself to run the first half somewhere in the neighborhood of a 9:00 to 9:30 pace and pick it up during the second.  I kept an eye on my watch during the first half and noticed a few times when I was running a sub-9:00 and had to tell myself to pull back.

I started to lose steam in the second half of the race and never really pushed myself faster than I ran the first half of the race.  According to my watch, I hit 13.1 around 2:04.  My official race time is 2:05:07.

I feel good about this.  I registered for the Richmond Half Marathon in November, and I intend to train. (For real.) It should help that fall running is much more pleasant than summer running.  Between now and that half, I have the Army 10 Mile Race and the Marine Corps 10K.

Beating the Heat

So, it's hot.  Although my running hasn't suffered completely, I haven't been getting in as many miles as my SmartCoach plan suggests because of the heat.  The folks over at Yahoo Shine shared some useful tips for safe running in summer heat.  I may have to pair these with tips for getting out of bed before work to get my run in.

Ze Frank Illustrates the Average Human Lifespan in Jelly Beans

My blog is three years-old! I still find it hard to believe that I've been running (and writing about it) for that long.  I feel like I should do something to celebrate -- like write a substantial update about my running and my race plan for the fall.  (Also, you guys, I bought a bike! It's beautiful, and I'm so excited to mix in cycling into my workout routine...and maybe sign up for a duathalon.)

I'll get to an update, I promise. 

Until then, here's a colorful reminder to cherish the time we have.  Ze Frank used Jelly Beans to illustrate the average life span and how that time is spent. 

(h/t The Laughing Squid)

Zero Prostate Cancer 4-Miler Race Round-Up

Oh, hey! It's been a while (posts containing YouTube videos and exclamations about fast miles not withstanding)!

What have I been up to?  Officially, the six few weeks have been spent training for the Rock 'n' Roll Philadelphia Half in September.  After two tries at Operation Sub-2:00, I figure that the third time has to be the charm.  (Also, I do just want to have fun because Philadelphia is an excellent city for racing.)  I'm using Smart Coach as the basis of my training plan and, so far, it seems to be working.  I'm running a lot, and the work that I've put in so far is definitely paying off.

My dad is in town this weekend for the Zero Prostate Cancer 4-Miler (formerly the Dash 4 Dad 4-Miler).  I wasn't focused on setting a PR, but I did want to run a consistent race. 

We started out together, but it took some time to find running room and settle into a good pace.  A bit into the race, I went ahead but my dad wasn't too far behind for most of the run. All told, I had a really great race (and it will always be humbling to be passed by cancer survivors and parents pushing jogging strollers).  And, bonus, I set a PR! 

Previous record: 36:10 (2012 Dash 4 Dad 4-Miler)
Net time: 35:08
Average pace: 8:47

Dad finished in 38:10, for an average pace of 9:33.  This continues to be my favorite way to spend Father's Day!

Hot Damn!

Either my watch is broken, or I ran my first sub-8:00 minute mile on my run today!

Or...

I dressed appropriately, have been eating balanced meals, have been getting enough sleep, and have followed through on my strength and speed workouts and ran my first sub-8:00 minute mile today.  I could get used to this -- especially the parts that involve treating my body well.

Oh well...

On the bright side, I save something in the neighborhood of $250 in race registration fees plus the cost of travel, a hotel in New York City, and other expenses. 

Treadmill Dance

I've been working on a post about my goals and training plan for this fall.  I plan to share my ideas with you once I've finalized my schedule, which includes figuring out which marathon I'm going to run.

Until then, here is a man showing off his sweet dance moves...on a treadmill.
Can we talk about how coordinated he is? And how I would likely fall flat on my face if I tried to do anything other than run on a treadmill?

From CASS: Sugarcoated & Corporate-Sponsored Street Harassment at DC’s Nike Women’s Half Marathon

Ugh.

Just ugh.

Bare Minerals encouraged "DC fraternity boys" (their phrasing) to hold signs during the Nike Women's Half Marathon that read "You look beautiful sweaty” and “Cute running shoes!"  You know, because women only run so that men can compliment us on how we look.

From Collective Action for Safe Spaces:

It’s hard enough for women to feel safe, secure and comfortable running in their own neighborhoods to train for half marathons in the first place. Street harassment is a real and scary part of many women’s daily runs, as well as their commutes to work and trips to the grocery store.  Much of the street harassment that we experience is centered around our looks, especially men’s opinions of them. Women’s bodies are the subjects of public commentary and conversations—both in the media and on the street.

The “Go Bare” campaign signs, held by Bare Escentuals’ very own team of “DC fraternity boys” (their phrasing, not mine) are tools of street harassment.

They’re simply sugarcoating and romanticizing the street harassment with pretty, professionally printed signs and free makeup at the finish line.

It's disappointing that this happened at a women's race designed to empower and provide an encouraging environment to run for women who might not otherwise do so.  It's also disappointing because this visible display of street harassment seems to normalize this kind of behavior.  Hopefully, Bare Minerals will get the message that this is not okay.

MSNBC's Mika Brzenzinski Opens Up About Exercise Bulimia

If you know me, you know that I have a huge girl crush on Mika Brzenzinski.  (Honestly, she's the only reason I watch Morning Joe.  She's brilliant, and I do love when she gives Scarborough the side eye.)

Recently, she opened up about her struggle with exercise bulimia, a compulsion to binge eat food and then overexercise to compensate.  You can check out The Frisky's coverage here and see a bit of the MORE article here.