I Run These Towns

I'm not a very still person; quiet introspection isn't really my thing. If you ask someone to describe me the chances that they would ever use the words calm, relaxed or peaceful are probably nonexistent. That's why running is so important for me - it's the only time when my world feels still (which is ironic given that it's not a calm activity). My mind feels at peace, and my body gets into a rhythm. Running is my quiet time. Last weekend I left my house at 5:30 in the morning to meet my friend for a race. There's something peaceful about being out and about so early. I love driving in the dark, windows down, feeling like I have the world all to myself. This is why I love running early in the morning, and I haven't been able to figure out how to schedule it in regularly since the baby was born. I love the pre-dawn quiet where all I can hear is my footsteps on the pavement and my own breathing. The dim glow of the streetlights is the only interruption to...

There are many races to be run, and they aren't free. It's hard for me to justify running a race more than once unless I really love it. Case in point this year will be my fifth running of the Capital City River Run in Lansing. It's one of my favorites, and if possible I run it every year. If I didn't like the race I generally write it off as miles logged and never consider running it again. Last weekend I did something unprecedented and ran a race I didn't enjoy the first time - The Crim 10-miler (I also ran the 5k to log some extra miles) in Flint. I ran the Crim in 2011 on a steamy August day, and I didn't love it. Interestingly my blog is not too scathing, although I did later rank it as my third least favorite race I'd ever run. In 2011 I found it too congested at the start and didn't enjoy the race much at all.  I've been open about my motivation struggles on the road to the New York Marathon. One way I've been addressing it is to ...

I like food. A lot. I like to be able to eat whatever I want whether I choose to do so in moderation or excess. There are some foods that I am smart to avoid with my Crohns (mostly seeds and certain raw fruits/veggies), but I've fought hard against being on some sort of restrictive diet because if I'm being honest I don't want to be one of those people. If you're not one of them, you know who I'm talking about. There's a stomach issue diet fad every few years. I've been told I should definitely give up gluten because apparently everyone has a gluten sensitivity (spoiler alert: they do not). I've been told to give up dairy. I've tried it for several months with no noticable positive health impact. For the 18 years that I've had Crohns I've found in general that the best approach for me is to eat smaller portions of whatever I want (aforementioned seeds/fruits/veggies excluded). On occasion I come to a point where everything I eat makes me si...

Ideally the purpose of a recreational activity one spends a lot of time pursuing should include fun. In the nearly decade I've been a runner I've loved it. Even when it's a hard run (which is not an infrequent occasion), I've loved it. I've loved the challenge, the runner's high, and the sacrifice of time and sore hips/knees. Running is my lover, and we've had a good thing going for quite a while. Right now we're going through a rocky patch. It's not you, running. It's definitely me. I've lost my focus. I want to love you the way I used to, but I can't seem to find my way back to you. Instead of feeling joyful, tacking on extra miles just feels like work. Every step feels labored instead of feeling triumphant.  Even those brief moments where you give me what I need just aren't enough anymore. I hate that I feel this way about running right now. Let's be honest - I'm entirely too goal oriented and focused to stop training f...

I've been known to be a touch hard on my adopted hometown of Lansing. There's a lot of potential here, and it's come a long way in the near decade since I moved here. Last year I wrote a love(?) letter to my adopted hometown with some constructive criticism/suggestions on ways to make downtown better. The list included the street design and the growing collection of unnecessary sub shops littering downtown's busiest street.  The street design piece is really coming along. As part of our Convert Capitol Avenue project a few weeks ago I got to get to know and love the city traffic engineer. This dude is amazing. I cannot possibly say enough positive things about his forward thinking view on street design and how downtown can be more vibrant. I am confident that with a bus rapid transit system possibly in Lansing's future the city streets will be reviewed and changed/narrowed. I'm confident that Lansing's streets will be safer and more pedestrian focused as...

I was first talked into running nearly a decade ago by a friend who looks like a gazelle. No seriously - she's tall, thin, beautiful. Her legs are longer than my legs and torso combined (or really pretty close). If you imagine what a runner should look like I think it would be a lot like her. When I started telling people I was running with her I'd often get a surprised, "Oh, you're a runner too? She looks like a runner." Of course I took this to imply that I didn't. It used to offend me until I realized that you don't have to be a size two with long legs to look like a runner.  My build is more gymnast than runner. I'm short and very muscular. I had someone recently tell me that my arms are so muscular I look like a bodybuilder. I was annoyed because that's not the look I'm going for, but strong IS the new skinny. I don't think I look like a runner. I'm fit, but you won't mistake me for a human gazelle. I lift cars in my spa...

I hate trail running. I don't want to. I really, really want to like it. Unfortunately every time I sign up for a trail race my excitement is dashed by tree roots and bugs and being smacked in the face by branches. I'm entirely too much of a diva to really enjoy trail running. Despite my general aversion to trails last weekend I ran the Legend Half Marathon at Sleepy Hollow State Park just north of Lansing. My main motivation for running the race was to keep myself on track while training for the New York Marathon. The race was nearby, and I ran the 10 mile version five years ago while training for my first marathon. I was miserable at the finish of the 2010 Legend 10-miler, but somehow I seemed to have forgotten that. It seemed like a good idea to try it again. At the finish of the 2010 Legend 10-miler. My face says it all. I haven't been in the best running shape the last month or so.  I had my first DNF (did not finish) at a 10k in Nashville on the 4th of July....