Kickoff Party!

This week was the kickoff party/optional 3 mile run to the running group I signed up for.  Due to low sign ups at the local store near me, the kickoff party was at another location that was a little over 30 minutes away from me.  Due to the pouring rain when I left, I dressed in jeans and a tank, thinking the run was called off.  Well, it wasn't raining when I got there, so the run was still on.  I wore my friendliest smile, which I hope was the "I'm approachable, come talk to me" smile...as opposed to the awkward "I don't know anyone here, and look kinda creepy" smile.

The kickoff party seemed pretty cool.  I was running about 10-15 minutes late, and it seemed like everyone was already there.  There was wine and assorted beverages available, and some food.  There was also Muscle Milk, as they are one of the race sponsors.  Everyone got a cute messenger bag made out of the recycled material they make the reusable grocery bags out of.  The bags had some 2Toms samples, a pack of Cliffshots, and a list of essential items you would need for the half marathon/training program.  The list doubled as a 15% coupon, which is good at their stores for the entire program...pretty cool!

It seemed like most of the people I talked to had never run a half marathon, and hadn't gone farther than a 5k.  Not really what I was looking for in a group when I signed up, but I'll take it.  Still gives me incentive to stick to the program for the weeks before the half.  Plus, maybe it was only who I spoke with?

This first group run on Sunday is for only 4 miles.  Usually, I do my long run on Sunday's with Lucy, so she is tired for the rest of the day, and is not a menace if we are not home.  I don't want to take her on a group run with people who don't know her.  I am thinking that I might get up earlier, run 4 with Lucy, bring her home, then run 4 with the group. 

Today's run was a little bit sticky and gross, as you could literally see the moisture in the air while we were running.  I spent most of the run battling with my new headphones.  I always cut one ear bud off, so that I can hear the cars.  My last pair was kinda torn up, so I used a gift card I had for Marshall's to get a new pair.  I hate to spend big money on something when I am going to throw half in the trash right away!  First off, the ear buds came with 3 sized buds.  I left the middle one on, threw out the large, and saved the small on the counter to see if I liked it better.  Yesterday, when cleaning the yard, I found the ear bud in one of Lucy's piles of fun!  How the heck did she get it?  Why would she eat it?  Anyway, I am just glad it came back out at this point in the game!  So I go for today's run with the new ear buds, with the right bud cut off.  It felt like I was fighting with the cord for most of the run, but I couldn't tell why...until I finally looked down!   The cord, which ran thru the inside of my shirt, was way longer than usual...longer than my running skirt!  Crazy!  I tried knotting it up, but it had some tangle free aspect to it, and the knot kept coming undone.  Good time!  At least I didn't throw away the old ones, as I can use these new ones on the boat, or something!

Probably not...

I ended up doing 40 minutes on the treadmill the other night while watching Downton Abby. Did I end up running 3? Probably not.  I need to do some type of headphone research.  I have a pair of earbuds by Phillips for my treadmill. For some reason, the cord comes apart in the middle, so you can have a longer or shorter cord maybe? Every time I would up the speed past the slowest jog, all I could hear was the cord swishing around.  Drove me batty! I ended up jacking up the incline and walking fast for the rest of the time.  I maybe ran a mile, mile and a half, before throwing in the towel.  Any recommendations for headphones for treadmill running?

In all honesty, the cord had always driven me nuts. When I run, I usually bring some cheesy mp3 player that has a clip and a speaker on it. If I clip it to my sports bra, I can hear the music while I run, AND the punk 18 years old who just drove right up behind me and laid on the horn to scare my dogs (funny, funny, kid. What goes around comes around). In the winter, it is sometimes too cold for my cheap mp3 player to work. I will either go without (and just talk out loud to my dogs,haha) or use my iPod shuffle. I cut one earbud off those headphones so that I could hear cars.  When I have run a race with headphones in, I constantly punch the cord and pull them out of my ears.I finally started running the cord down the back of my shirts.



Yesterday, I took the day off, besides some light shoveling. Today, I did 30 minutes of weights and 30 minutes of cardio at the gym.  Looking forward to my Chobani bites for dessert tonight. I thought I loved the coffee one, but the pineapple one was so much better once I found them!  Try them if you see them...great flavors and only 100 calories.