Contrary to what you might guess from the title Run, Baby, Run, this *isn’t* a blog about enslaving infants in brutal marathon training regimes – however novel and controversial that might be.  (The entries would practically write themselves. “Are Crawling Breaks Cheating?”; “10 Ways to End Diaper Chafe;” and my personal favorite, “Should Soothers be Allowed in Races?”)

Nope, Run, Baby, Run is actually a three-word description of my running history to date. I ran (a lot; 6 marathons and countless halfs in the span of four years); then I had a baby (the delightful Ms. Alexandra, born in early January); and now I’m running again (slowly, sporadically, and humbly.) Against the advice of pretty much every sane person I know, I’ve registered for the Ottawa Half-Marathon at the end of May – in part to ensure that I actually *do* start running again, but also to test out how something that was once so all-consuming as my run training could be re-worked into a teeny bit of balance in an otherwise chaotic, sleep-deprived existence.

Of course, but a few weeks into the journey (to use my favourite reality show parlance – have you ever noticed that everything on reality shows – from finding love in a herd of catty bachelorettes to sustaining drunken head injuries –  is referred to as a ‘journey’?), I’m already ready to hoist on my shoulders any mom who manages to get out the door in a pair of running shoes, even if it’s just to run to the curb to grab the newspaper. I hope to use this blog, not just to tell my own little training story, but also to share the experience and wisdom of other new moms who are trying find some sort of physical and emotional equilibrium through running in these already-grueling post-partum months. Oh, and I’d also kind of like my old jeans to fit again.

Since I’m already a week late in posting my first entry, I also know finding the time to blog consistently will be a challenge. So forgive me in advance if, some days, my entries are more the cryptic scribblings of a an overtired lunatic than paragraphs upon paragraphs of eloquent blog-prose. See the description of my Monday workout, below, for an example of what I mean.

Hours slept: 5

Most consecutive hours slept: 1.5

Kilometres run: 3

Most consecutive kilometres run: 1 (had to stop three times to adjust the speed on Alex’s swing, which sits next to our treadmill. She’s still too little for the jogging stroller. )

Thoughts on race goal: What was I thinking?!

The workout: 5x (200m/45″/1000m) 2.5 mins rest between sets.  I want to come up with a format that is easy to understand so if you don’t understand what I wrote there, it is 5 sets of one 200m 45 seconds rest and then a 1000m and 2.5 minutes rest between sets (the 1000m and the next 200m).  Now the trick is this the 200’s were suppose to be a good consistent pace well under 5k race pace BUT the first 2 1000’s were to be 5k pace, next 2 at 10 seconds faster than 5k race pace and then the final 1000 at 20 seconds faster than 5k race pace.

This workout is a funny followup from the last one I blogged on because you’re pretty much “sandbagging”, saving it for later on.  However, it really is important to work on your pacing abilities so in this scenario, not Sandbagging.  This was a bit tough for me because I haven’t raced in ages and I have NO idea what my 5k race pace is.  I guessed I’d be between 16 and 16:30 at this stage of things so I thought I’d try out 3:15 1000’s to start.  I was a bit quick after 400m of the first one so I slowed right down and ended up running 3:18 opps a little slow but better that at this stage than to fast.  Next one was a nice even 3:14,  mentally these intervals were shockingly easy so I felt this was probably an okay estimate of my race pace.

I don’t really like it when a workout feels easy so I got progressively more excited as things heated up!  Obviously I got a little excited and the 3rd one ended up being 3:02 opps! Back on with a 3:05 on the 4th and then it was really go time.  The thing I love about the final interval is that no matter what, you have enough to finish so you may as well see if you can just crush it, I mean you made it this far!  So I’m sure you can all do the math my last 1000 was suppose to be 2:55, when it gets to this point I don’t feel like I have the capacity to pace myself really it’s an all out effort so I got up to the fastest pace that I thought I could hold for a full 1000.  I ended up running 2:49, so about 25 seconds faster than my predicted race pace.  This felt great and gave me a great boost of confidence so really I benefited in a couple of ways from this workout.  I got that nice aerobic type stimulus and then a good hard hit of confidence at the end!  This is good now I just have to keep up confidence and get ready for a my first race since the fall!  I’ll be heading to Hamilton for the Around the Bay 5k!  I’ll check in before then but we will see how accurate my estimates were for 5k pace.

If your just getting to know me, check out one of my favourite races the 1000m final at the Ontario University champs last year, I’m the second guy in lane one at the start!

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MzUMEAhNvYM

Happy Running,

Josh

p.s Funny story my pump up music pre workout was Annie Lennox!!  That’s right I’m running on running on broken glass.  Anyone who cares to read this far won’t make fun of me I figured!

First of all, when you have a blog and need to generate traffic, you include the words “celebrity” and “nudity” whenever possible.  It’s no secret that the #1 use of the internet is searching for celebrity nudity, so if you use the words celebrity nudity then search engines will index you appropriately and people looking for celebrity nudity will be directed to your site.  Don’t blame me, I didn’t invent the internet or celebrity nudity.  Al Gore invented the internet and Jamie Lee Curtis invented celebrity nudity.

Anyway, here’s a video of everyone’s favourite NFL goofball  and upcoming Dancing With The Stars contestant Chad Ochocinco (né Johnson… he legally changed his last name to Ochocinco as a not-entirely-accurate reference to his uniform number 85) running au naturel in a California park.

It’s actually a Reebok ad, part of a viral video campaign they started a month or so ago.

Daniel Komen’s longstanding indoor 3000m record is safe for now, as Kenenisa Bekele has been forced to withdraw from tomorrow’s meet in France due to a tweaked calf.  The injury had already forced him out of last month’s Aviva Grand Prix in Birmingham, England as well.

Here’s a video of Bekele bullying the field in an outdoor 3000m race in Stockholm in 2007.

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RFZM0G247gY&feature=related

There’s an article in the NY Times today about the efforts of athletes driven out of wintery conditions to replicate their outdoor training indoors.

It’s an interesting enough read, although I think it muddies the waters a bit by mentioning indoor running, indoor cycling and indoor rowing all in one conversation.  It’s widely agreed that the difference between indoor and outdoor cycling is more pronounced because the effect of air resistance is more important at cycling’s much higher speeds, and the difference between actual rowing and rowing machines is more pronounced because of the very different emphasis on technique.  Perhaps discussing it in the same conversation as those two activities might lead one to overstate the indoor/outdoor differences in running as a matter of association.

I’ve always contended that a workout’s a workout, and in the absence of a bib and a timing chip it’s less about the measurable “performance” and more about the exertion and physical adaptations.  If I get on the treadmill and a given pace feels too easy for the type of workout I’ve chosen, I’ll just dial up the machine’s speed by a half mph or run for 15 minutes longer.  As long as I’m conscious of the situation and I don’t start to believe that I’m becoming Kenenisa Bekele, I don’t see it as a big deal.  And as Brian Sell mentions in the Times article, beyond comfort there are practical reasons to take a workout indoors.  Slipping on ice and bashing my hip, or getting smoked by a car that didn’t see me in the shortened daylight can really hamper a workout.  I have yet to be hit by a Mustang at the gym, though I have been hit on by a Cougar.  Hey-Ohhhh!

(Sorry I don’t have a handy internet link for you, but for those of you who own Dr Tim Noakes’ encyclopedic Lore Of Running there’s a good explanation of research relating to the effects of wind resistance on runners of different speeds on page 58 in a section called “Environmental Conditions”.  It might be a handy reference next time someone tells you to set the treadmill incline at 1% to compensate for a lack of wind resistance indoors.)

“Diaper backward spells repaid. Think about it.”
Marshall McLuhan

GRANT: Vicky, what would you say is going to be the coolest feature of our new blog?

VICKY: Good question.  I think it will the interaction with readers.  Is that what you were thinking?

GRANT: No.

VICKY: You were thinking about the multimedia aspect.  Putting on podcasts, vodcasts, chat sessions?

GRANT: No, not that.

VICKY: Hmmm, oh yeah, interviews with authors and athletes.

GRANT: No, not that either.

VICKY: Reading inspiring stories and great literature?

GRANT: No.

VICKY: Our hilarious back and forth banter and unique writing style?

GRANT: Good one, but no not that.

VICKY:  I give up then because this is becoming really stupid.

GRANT: Okay I’ll tell you.  I think what is going to be incredibly awesome about this blog is cutting and pasting our heads on other people’s bodies.

VICKY: Born to Run:  A Hidden Tribe, Superathletes, and the Greatest Race the World Has Never Seen is about Christopher McDougall’s journey to find the secrets of the world’s greatest distance runners. Here’s an excerpt from the publisher’s website:

“Full of incredible characters, amazing athletic achievements, cutting-edge science, and, most of all, pure inspiration, Born to Run is an epic adventure that began with one simple question: Why does my foot hurt? In search of an answer, Christopher McDougall sets off to find a tribe of the world’s greatest distance runners and learn their secrets, and in the process shows us that everything we thought we knew about running is wrong.

Isolated by the most savage terrain in North America, the reclusive Tarahumara Indians of Mexico’s deadly Copper Canyons are custodians of a lost art. For centuries they have practiced techniques that allow them to run hundreds of miles without rest and chase down anything from a deer to an Olympic marathoner while enjoying every mile of it. Their superhuman talent is matched by uncanny health and serenity, leaving the Tarahumara immune to the diseases and strife that plague modern existence. With the help of Caballo Blanco, a mysterious loner who lives among the tribe, the author was able not only to uncover the secrets of the Tarahumara but also to find his own inner ultra-athlete, as he trained for the challenge of a lifetime: a fifty-mile race through the heart of Tarahumara country pitting the tribe against an odd band of Americans, including a star ultramarathoner, a beautiful young surfer, and a barefoot wonder.

With a sharp wit and wild exuberance, McDougall takes us from the high-tech science labs at Harvard to the sun-baked valleys and freezing peaks across North America, where ever-growing numbers of ultrarunners are pushing their bodies to the limit, and, finally, to the climactic race in the Copper Canyons. Born to Run is that rare book that will not only engage your mind but inspire your body when you realize that the secret to happiness is right at your feet, and that you, indeed all of us, were born to run.”

GRANT: The author seems like a pretty cool dude too. I visited the publisher’s website and found out he’s got a really interesting writing path. Here’s what they had to say about the author:

“Christopher McDougall is a former war correspondent for the Associated Press and is now a contributing editor for Men’s Health. A three-time National Magazine Award finalist, he has written for Esquire, The New York Times Magazine, Outside, Men’s Journal, and New York. He does his own running among the Amish farms around his home in rural Pennsylvania.”

VICKY: I totally agree. I was on Christopher’s website and there’s some really fascinating information on topics like barefoot running. Didn’t Ryan write a blog about this recently?

GRANT: Yes he did. It’s definitely a hot topic in the running community.  I suggest you also check out Christopher’s You Tube video: Christopher McDougall on why he was BORN TO RUN.

VICKY: Well folks, there’s lots of stuff out there on this book and this author. I find getting to know the author and the idea behind the book makes it a more interesting read so enjoy and let us know what you think! You can leave your comments on the site or email us at irunbookclub@gmail.com.

“What appears to be the end may really be a new beginning” by unknown author.

GRANT:  Hey Vic. Welcome back.

VICKY:  Hey Grantster. Welcome back to you too. It’s hard to believe they wanted us back.

GRANT:  Back for another adventure!

VICKY:  On the road again!  Amazing.  I am psyched!

GRANT:  For those of you who have no clue who we are, allow us to introduce ourselves by quoting from iRun Magazine’s Spring 2009 issue: “Self-described ‘running nerds’, Vicky and Grant are co-workers who ‘spend their lunch hours at the nearest bookstore and will often be seen around the office getting excited about a new energy bar or running gadget’.”

VICKY:  Good memory Grant. I’d forgotten that iRun Magazine officially introduced all the Running Blog Idol contestants in that issue. To be honest the only thing I remember from that issue is Adam Van Koeverden’s naked torso on the cover.

GRANT:  Of course. I should have known when iRun Magazine approached us to write a blog, you would pick up right where you left off with Van Kayak.

VICKY:  Merely pointing out my memories of that issue in particular (sigh). Now back to our blog. Some of you may recall the title of our last blog entry as Running Blog Idol contestants: “The End is Only the Beginning”. Little did we know at the time how true that would be in a matter of months. Now that we are once again part of the iRun Magazine family, let me tell you that it feels great to be back.

GRANT:  It sure does. As many of you know, Vicky and I are not only runners but we are also avid readers. So, when iRun Magazine did a Guest Editor call-out for ideas, we submitted one about creating a runners’ book club. We thought it would be the perfect combination of our two shared passions: running and reading. Hence the title of our blog:  “iRun, iRead:  The Runners’ Book Club”.

VICKY:  We have tons of ideas for blog posts about books we’ve read, are reading and will be reading that relate to running or would be of interest to runners. However, this will not be a book review blog so don’t look for a list of books and little stars rating them on a scale of 1 to 5.

GRANT:  There are many great books out there to inspire, motivate, educate and inform you on how to be the best runner you can be. We hope that through our blog, you’ll find some to add to your reading list.

VICKY:  This time around though, we hope to throw in some podcasts into the mix because we know sometimes reading can get a little boring. Plus, we’re excited to do interviews with authors and some of our readers to spice things up a bit.

GRANT:  Don’t forget that I will undoubtedly be cutting and pasting our heads into a variety of hilarious images! This is going to be awesome and we hope you’ll tag along for the ride!

VICKY:  Alright then, let’s get started! As our first book, we have decided to read the national bestseller “Born to Run” by Christopher McDougall.

GRANT:  Come again soon for some thoughts, discussions and general ramblings about the book. It looks like it’s going to be a wild read!