April 16, 2014 by Darlene

Who Keeps You Healthy?

The American Recall Center is a brand new site devoted to providing health and wellness news in simple, straightforward terms. Their ultimate goal is to help their readers take complete charge of their health by being fully informed!

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This past March, they reached out to a group of other bloggers to create a blog post that included an explanation and photo of who in their life kept them healthy. In other words, who’s their “Health Hero“? Because of the fantastic response and the relatively small number of bloggers that participated, they are running this campaign again for the month of April.

Like they did in March, they will feature a collage of all of the images from every participant in their Community Section.

My Health Hero:

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My health hero is my co-worker Sherri. Where I work, our jobs are mostly sedentary. In other words, we sit at a desk all day and work on the computer.

Sherri, who has severe neck & back problems (that require PT and cortisone shots) and recently had a hysterectomy, is more active than anyone I know.

She arrives early each day so she can walk before work. For her 15 minute morning break, she walks a 1 mile inside when the weather is cold (which his most of the time in the NE) or outside around the track in the nicer temps.

For her lunch hour, she rides the exercise bike or walks on the treadmill.

And for her 15 minute afternoon break, she repeats her morning routine. If that weren’t enough, she has free weights at her desk so she do upper body strength exercises in preparation for kayak season.

Before I met Sherri, I would sit at my desk all day! I even ate lunch at my desk. Now at 11 am, she stops by my office and encourages me to accompany her on her 15 minute walk around the school.

I am a runner but she walks almost as fast as I run. I struggle to keep up but I am so happy that she gets me out of my chair once a day. She may even motivate me to leave my desk for lunch, too.

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Happy Running! Do you have a “Health Hero”?

April 15, 2014 by Darlene

I Suck at Hills

Hills are my downfall in running. I avoid them at all cost. As a result, when I encounter them in race, I am unprepared. Then what do I do? Walk, of course. And there goes my race pace.

Here are some strategies that are supposed to make hill running easier:

Lean into the hill from your hips with your chest out.
The steeper the hill the more you lean.
Shorten your stride and lift your knees.
Think of picking up your feet more and stepping lightly.
Drive off your back foot.
Pump your arms but no need to exaggerate the action.
Look straight ahead and try to focus on something a few feet in front of you. This will help pull you up the hill.
Try to run relaxed, you mightn’t feel this way but don’t worry you’ll soon be at the top.
Keep an even and steady rhythm.
Try to maintain the same breathing rate as you would on the flat. Of course on very steep hills you’ll probably be breathing harder.

from: http://www.women-running-together.com/hillrunning.html

So my goal is to get better and…

And the only way that is to happen is to practice.

Hill repeats, here I come!

I have some hilly races coming up this summer so hopefully I can get more comfortable with hills.

Happy Running? Do you do hill repeats? Do you practice running on hills?

April 13, 2014 by Darlene

Spring is Here (at least for a short time)

spring

Finally a day that feels like spring!

As I said yesterday, it was too beautiful outside to not run some more miles. And the area where the race race took place was so nice that I decided to stay put and run there.

I heard that the 10k had better views so I decided to go that way. I wasn’t going to run 6.2 miles — just maybe 3 more.

It was farmland and mountains in all directions.

No traffic at all.

A sign that I was not in the city any more.

Definitely a dairy farm area.

I miscalculated and wound up with 3.5 extra miles.

I think I made the right decision to run the 5k. I won a pie and I got my miles in as well.

Afterward, I decided to take a different way home. On my run I saw a sign for a yarn store and a zoo.

Well, I found neither but I did take a delightful ride along the Hudson River.

At one point, I had to stop and take the pictures above. The spray of the water was breathtaking.

I continued on my way and arrived in familiar territory — where my hubby and I used to fly his plane (it got destroyed by ice several years ago). And I stopped at our favorite ice cream place – Bubbles diner.

coffee raspberry twist – yum!

At that point, I headed back to the highway toward home to do some mundane things like grocery shopping, laundry, etc.

Today, was another spring-like day. I had promised to take my mentee’s kids to the the butterfly exhibit at a local museum.

We had a lot of fun with the butterflies.

As well as the other fun hands-on science activities.

After a stop at Mac Donald’s to pick up lunch, we headed to the park to eat and play on the playground.

It was warm but quite windy. Perfect for flying kites.

What warm day would be complete without a stop for ice cream on the way home. So we did.

This was my rest day but boy am I tired!!

Happy Running! What did you do to enjoy the warm weather?

runner-sig

April 12, 2014 by Darlene

2014 Bacon Hill Bonanza 5K Race Report

bacon hill

I am not sure why I registered for the 10K instead of the 5k. Maybe cuz they were both the same price or that it was more worth the drive.

10 K

Anyway, the 10K would be downhill for the first half and then uphill for the last half but the 5k was an out and back and would be mostly flat.

So I changed my mind. I switched to the 5K and then planned to run 3 miles after.

This was a new race for me. There were other closer races but first place male and female winners for each age group (5 year increments) would receive a homemade pie, second place age group winners homemade cookies, and third place homemade muffins. The finish line would also feature homemade chili and other goodies for all runners. Enough of an incentive for me.

The race started at 10 am which was good since it would be an hour minute drive.

Again the weather was tricky. What to wear? It was cool in the morning (low 40s) but scheduled to warm up to the 60s. I opted for a long sleeve shirt (the one I got from last week’s race), skirt & compression socks. I brought a jacket just in case.

I got to the race early and found a parking spot in a field next to the church. The race started at the church in the town of Bacon Hill, a small farming town with awesome scenery. (It reminded me of Vermont.)

This was the second year for this race but the first year for the 10K. There were a little over 200 for the 5k and a little over a 100 for the 10K (nice numbers for a small town race.) I bumped into a lady from my age group that I know from previous races but she was running the 10K. It seemed that the faster runners were doing that one. Good for me!!

It was chilly. First I had my jacket on, then I put my race shirt over my other shirt and then I put them both back in my car. (Right move, it got warm!)

love the pink tech shirt, men got neon green

I hung out and started chatting with a guy and his wife. They were from my town and we have done most of the same races.

First there was the kids race – one mile. They were so cute. I told the organizers about my running buddy and they gave me this medal (I usually mail him my race shirts but I doubt he would want a pink women’s shirt.)

Soon it was time for the race to start. The pastor read a prayer and the church bells rang and we were off.

The 5k was an out and back. The 10k veered to the right and supposed had hills and breath taking views.

I decided to go out fast. I have have negative splits so why try. It wasn’t as flat as I thought. The hills were bad but I felt like I was running up. I didn’t walk up any!!

There were volunteers on the course calling out times. I occasionally glanced down at my Garmin to make sure I was running in the 9’s. Eventually we turned around and head back….INTO THE WIND!!! Tough running into the wind for 1.5 miles but again I didn’t stop for water and I didn’t walk up any hills. I just pushed myself. I even found myself passing people.

As I approached the finish line, I realized that not only was I under 30 minutes, I could finish under 29 minutes. Unfortunately I had no gas left and I barely made it. Not sure what my official finish time was but my Gamin says: 28:53!! I was pleased. First 5k under 30 minutes since last November.

I immediately made a bee line for the chocolate milk. Boy was it good. I think I had 5 cups.

They had great food – the usual food but also chili and homemade muffins & cookies (including gluten free ones).

Someone that I met at the Malta 5k last September recognized me. We had chatted a lot after that race. Holly is just a year younger than (different age group – YAY!). We talked while waiting for the results.

results for me and my new friends (I beat the “guy”)

I looked and saw that they had my age wrong: 59 not 60. I told them and they changed it but they had a lot of ages wrong. This meant that we had to wait a really long time for the awards. It was nice to have someone to wait with. They were giving out homemade pie & cookies so everyone was waiting. And I won a pie!!! (Love my age group!) Holly won 3rd and cookies.

I put the pie in my car and changed into my race shirt. I really didn’t feel like running more but I promised myself that I would.

I had planned to head home and stop at one of the bike paths on the way. But this area was so nice, I decided to stay and run. (More about it in my next post.)

All in all, I loved this race. I will definitely do it again…maybe even the 10K.

Splits:

mile 1- 9:00
mile 2 – 9:32
mile 3 – 9:33
.1 – 8:09

(yup, positive splits – can I blame it on the wind?)

Goals:

run the whole thing without stopping – YES!
finish under 30 minutes – YES!
keep each mile’s pace under 10 minutes – YES!
win an AG award (they’re giving out baked goods!) – YES! 1st!
have fun! – YES!
stay healthy! – YES!

Happy Running! Are you running or racing this weekend?

April 11, 2014 by Darlene

Why Do You Run?

I was running in the first annual Runners World 5k in Bethlehem PA while visiting my best friend from high school & college. Can you tell from this photo that I was in agony? I was running with a stress fracture in my foot. I could hardly walk but I was running AND I was happy. I forgot about my pain. I was approaching the finish line and my friend was there cheering me on.

I am not saying that I was smart to run with an injury. But what I am saying is that when I have problems and things aren’t going well, running boosts my spirits.

strong

I was 60 years old in this photo. I was recovering from another injury. This time, a broken foot. Since I started running, I have felt stronger and more fit. If I have an injury, I know that I will recover. I think that because I am a runner, I recover faster. I also feel younger and healthier. That doesn’t mean that I always eat healthy because I don’t. But running has kept my weight in check, despite my love for all things carb.

proud

When I seriously broke my ankle and needed surgery, the ortho said I may not run again and if I did, not long distances. Well, I did run 3 half marathons after that injury. (The first one is this photo.) And I am proud. I am proud that I tried and proud that I succeeded. There may come a day that I can’t do it. I am proud that I still can.

So on the subject of running, I have another race tomorrow. I had signed up to the 10K and then chickened out. I want to work on speed and the 5K is flatter so I switched. I promise to do a 10K in May.

My goals are similar to my last race’s and will be the same for upcoming short distance races:

run the whole thing without stopping
finish under 30 minutes
keep each mile’s pace under 10 minutes
win an AG award (they’re giving out baked goods!)
have fun!
stay healthy!

Happy Running! Why do you run?

April 9, 2014 by Darlene

1st Quarter Report Card

report-card1 3 months down and 9 to go. How am I doing on my 2014 Goals?

1. Do not get injured. So far, so good.

happy legs and feet!

2. Run 3-4 times a week ALL YEAR. Yes!

even in the freezing cold

3. Continue fitting in tennis and/or yoga once a week. Tennis YES, Yoga NO.

my instructor returns from maternity leave on May 7.

4. Finish most of my 5K races under 30 minutes. No, but only ran one 5k.

30:17 @ 9:45 pace

5. Run at least one race per month and at least 20 for the year.Yes! 6 races so far.

HMRRC 15K in Jan.

Polar Cap in Feb.

Runnin of the Green in Mar.

6. Run a race in another state or even a NEW state. Yes, Mayor’s Wellness 10 miler in CA, Lighthouse 5k in FL and the Love Run Half in PA. But they are not new states.

Lighthouse 5K in FL.

7. Run at least 10 NEW races. 4 so far- Mayor’s Wellness 10m, HMRRC Winter Series #3 15K, Lighthouse 5k, Love Run

first annual Love Run

8. Run in NYC. No, not yet.

This is as close as I have gotten

9. Get an Age Group award. Yes! 3rd at the Mayor’s Wellness, 1st at the Lighthouse 5K

Mayor’s Wellness 10m

10. Run a 10 mile race. Yes! Mayor’s Wellness 10m

Mayor’s Wellness 10m

11. Run at least one half marathon. Yes! The Love Run.

12. PR in a half marathon. Yes! at the Love Run.

4 sec PR

13. Run over 800 miles. 256 miles so far. I’m on my way.

lst quarter

14. Continue to blog almost everyday. Yes!

So I am doing pretty good so far.

I am expanding GOAL #3 and adding upper body & core strength exercises (planks & weights)

these sit on my desk & I have begun to use them as well doing planks in the am.

and changing GOAL #4 from 5k races to all races (except 15ks & half marathons) to under 10 min. pace per mile.

4 miler in 38:07

Things to work on the next 9 months:

start yoga
finish a 5k under 30 minutes
race in a new state
run in NYC
continue to race each month
continue to sign up for new races
STAY HEALTHY

Happy Running! Do you have yearly goals? If so, how are you doing so far this year?

April 7, 2014 by Darlene

Monday Running Update

Last Week:

Monday – rest, 1 mile walk at work, mall walk after work with BFF

Tuesday – rest, 1 mile walk at work, tennis

our fastest so far

Wednesday – 1 mile walk inside at work, 2 mile walk during lunch outside, 4 mile run

Washington park (lake is still frozen)

Spring at last!

Thursday – 1 mile walk at work, 3 mile run on the track

getting faster indoors…

on the track

Friday – 1 mile walk at work, 4 3 mile run on the tm, mah jongg

thought it was going to rain…ran out of time so couldn’t get in 4

Saturday – rest, dinner out with my hubby

Sunday – 5 m race + 2 more miles later

on the rail trail

Must be my lucky week. I won a blog giveaway:

and I won the door prize at my race:

Maybe I should buy a lottery ticket?

This Week:

Monday – rest, tennis
Tuesday – 3 miles on the tm at lunch, tennis
Wednesday – 4 miles
Thursday – 4 miles
Friday – rest, mah jongg
Saturday – 5K race + 3 miles
Sunday – rest, day with Amanda & sons

Happy Running! How is your running going? Any races ?

April 6, 2014 by Darlene

Delmar Dash Race Report

dd14

It is nice to run a race that is only 10 minutes from your house.

course map

It’s always hard at this time of year to decide what to wear. Too cool for spring clothes but with the sun, you get warm with winter clothes.

decided to wear purple

Believe it or not, it was sunny. I was so happy not to deal with rain.

But it was much colder than I had hoped. It was in the 30s and very windy so in the 20s with the wind chill. I am really tired of my winter running clothes so I decided to go with the original outfit but add a black long sleeved half zip under my purple shirt and a windbreaker over it plus I wore gloves.

And I was cold!!! But I hoped that I would warm up while running. (After last weekend, I knew I could handle being a little cold.)

At least there was a school gym to wait in until the beginning of the race. My tennis friend, MaryPat is injured & decided not to run the race. But I did recognize quite a few runners. I went back to my car to get rid of my race shirt & to grab gloves…brrr!!

women’s long sleeve tech one

I even bumped into someone I met on Facebook who snapped the pic below:

We chatted for awhile about racing, of course. She is training for a half in 2 mos in Boston. It’s nice to meet a local runner.

here we are…I hate selfies!

Soon it was time to go outside and brave the wind & cold. I started near the front because I wasn’t sure if the race was chip timed.

I started at a fast pace for me but it seemed that everyone was passing me by…. Like the Runnin of the Green, this race attracts a fast crowd. (I never even thought about an AG award.)

starting off (with my pink gloves)

I was cold the whole race & I found it difficult to move forward when we were running into the wind. At least the course was mostly flat. But it seemed flatter last year. This year I felt like I was running uphill most of the time. It was probably because I felt so sluggish and tired.

I was tempted to stop at the water stop which was halfway but since I wasn’t warm, I decided to push myself past it. I knew at this point I would finish under 50 minutes but I also knew that I would not PR.

looking happy only because I saw the photographer

I was definitely running out of gas during mile 4 and wished that I had run slower at the beginning of the race.

dd2

But finally it was over and according to my Garmin, I crossed at 48:14. (My slowest Delmar Dash – more than a minute slower than my PR.)

I was disappointed!! But I did my best. There will be more races.

I went inside and got some refreshments – birthday cake, bread, fruit, bagels, etc.

dd14

I hung out with runners that I knew while waiting for the awards. None for me. I think I came in 4th. But I did win the door prize!! Woo Hoo!

It has a lot of cool stuff in it:

My splits:

mile 1: 9:11
mile 2: 9:37
mile 3: 9:48
mile 4: 9:53
mile 5: 9:36

first half: 23:43 2nd half: 24:32

Yes, mostly positive splits.

My goals were to RUN THE WHOLE THING and finish UNDER 50 MINUTES!!!

I met my goals..YAY me!

Happy Running! Did you run or race this weekend? If so, how was it?

April 4, 2014 by Darlene

Next Race and Giveaway Winner

Sunday, April 6, 2014

This is my third time doing this race and my third 5 miler.

It is also the race that is the closest to where I live (2 miles away.)

Delmar Dash 2011

Delmar Dash 2013

I looked at my splits for 2011 and 2013 and they were all in the 9’s with one in the 8’s. I finished at 47:08 and 47:39!!!!!

In the 8’s!! I wonder who that runner was… It certainly isn’t me now!!

I know I should be happy that I am even able to run. So yes, I am happy!!

And besides, I just finished a HALF MARATHON last weekend!! My legs are still tired.

The course for this race is very familiar to me…it’s where I have done a lot of my runs.

course map

My goals are to RUN THE WHOLE THING, HAVE FUN and finish UNDER 50 MINUTES!!!

AND THE WINNER OF POCKETFUEL IS:

winner

Congrats, Leah!

Happy Running! Are you racing this weekend?

April 2, 2014 by Darlene

The Pre-Love Run Half Marathon Race Report

This race was planned last fall by my new runner friend, Heidi. She then invited her local friend Adrienne (whom I have met & run with). Both Heidi and Adrienne were bringing their husbands (Heidi’s hubby was even running.) It was also Heidi & Adrienne’s FIRST half marathon. (How exciting!)

Heidi, Adrienne & me back in January

Then Heidi invited 2 high school friends, Lisa & Andrea. I had met neither of them. They were experienced runners and were traveling solo. Lisa got her own room so Andrea would be my roommate.

Everyone was driving out except me & Lisa. We were flying.

On Friday, I worked a half day and then flew out to Philly.

Nothing on this trip was easy or went smoothly. My flight was supposed to leave at 5:15 pm. It was delayed then we sat on the tar mat for 2 HOURS!!

I finally arrived in the Philly airport around 8 pm. I reserved my shuttle ahead (Big Mistake!). I don’t want to go into all the details but they got mixed up on the flt time & number and after many calls of hearing “He’s on his way” and waiting 2 hours, I arrived at my hotel at 10:30 pm. LONG DAY!!

The hotel Heidi picked was the Sheraton Downtown – not the race hotel (which was more expensive.) But the accommodations were fine (clean, comfy bed unfortunately no microwave, fridge or hot tub)

I met my roommate Andrea for the first time. She was awesome. We got along great.

we had a great view from our room

This hotel was about a mile away from the start of the race which was at the art museum.

map phillyPNG

The hotel is, however, just a few blocks from the Convention Center where the expo was being held.

The next morning, Andrea (who has lots of food allergies) & I made breakfast in our room (I had tea & oatmeal made creatively with a coffee maker). Then we met Lisa and walked over to the expo. (I was also meeting Lisa for the first time…just loved her.) Adrienne and her hubby were going out to breakfast (They have young kids & were savoring every kid-free moment.) and would meet us there. Heidi & her hubby Kevin has decided at the last moment to arrive today rather than last night.

Andrea, me & Lisa entering the expo

First we got our bibs, then our shirts (tech short sleeved) and a coffee mug.

Then we met up with Adrienne and walked around the expo together.

Adrienne, Lisa, me & Andrea with our bibs

The expo was a typical expo. Lots of running stuff to buy at good prices. But I really didn’t need a thing so I didn’t buy anything (I was tempted to buy shoes, though!!) They were giving away free tech shirts from past events so I took 2 of those.

Adrienne got her hair braided…

while Lisa & Andrea got massages.

Then Lisa, Andrea & I walked across the street to have lunch at Reading Terminal Market. It was great. You could find anything you wanted to eat.

Lisa & Andrea having a healthy vegetarian lunch

I forgot to mention that it was raining. Well, pouring. So we decided to take a trolley tour around town.

So we stayed dry and it was really informative. I learned a lot about the city (I want to go back!) We had planned to get out at each stop but it was too cold and raining too hard.

We did get out at the museum to run up the steps and snap a picture of Rocky.

And also to see the Liberty Bell.

We actually spent the whole day on the trolley.

We decided to go out to dinner as a group since even Kevin & Heidi had arrived.

me, Adrienne, Lisa, Kevin, Heidi & Andrea

Of course we chose a place that served pasta and we walked there (in the rain.)

left side: Kevin, Heidi, Adrienne & Dan. Right: Andrea, me & Lisa

After a lengthy wait, we got our food and it was very good. We chatted about the upcoming race, of course, and what to wear with the weather forecast being cold and rainy.

We got back to the hotel rather late but who sleeps the night before a big race anyway? (More about the actual race in tomorrow’s post. Spoiler: got very very wet!)

**Don’t forget to enter my PocketFuel giveaway!

Happy Running! Have you ever been to or run in Philly?

My First 5K and More…

An "Older" Runner's Blog

running

Who Keeps You Healthy?

I Suck at Hills

Spring is Here (at least for a short time)

2014 Bacon Hill Bonanza 5K Race Report

Why Do You Run?

1st Quarter Report Card

Monday Running Update

Delmar Dash Race Report

Next Race and Giveaway Winner

The Pre-Love Run Half Marathon Race Report

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