Runner's High.

Albert Einstein defined insanity as "doing the same thing over and over again expecting different results." By that definition, I am insane. I ran my second marathon, and for some reason I expected it to be easy. It wasn't. At about mile nine I began thinking to myself, "Why am I doing this? I don't have to. No one is making me. This is hard. What was I thinking?" I even questioned, "If I die doing this, would this count as suicide?"

The first eight or so miles were pretty easy. It was downhill and I wasn't expecting to see any hill until mile 14 or so. I was wrong. The rolling hills started about mile 10. And that is when I hit my wall. That is when I typically hit my wall, so I wasn't too surprised. The hard thing was that I didn't get my second wind until mile 20. So for ten miles I struggled. Normally I will get a second wind between miles 15–17, but it just wasn't coming. That is when I started questioning my sanity.

Near the end however, the miles started to seem shorter. The funny thing is, that according to my handy GPS watch, the miles were getting longer. Up until mile 16 my watch was accurate. Then all of a sudden it was off. What was going on? Was my watch inaccurate or were the mile markers for the race getting off. My conclusion is that I indeed ran not only the standard 26.2 miles, but I ran also an additional .18 mile at least. Now some people might think, "Well, you already ran for 26 miles, what's another two tenths?" It's a big deal! I could have taken two minutes off my total time.

Now this is when the insanity kicks in. As soon as I crossed that finish line, I immediately thought to myself,"Well, that wasn't that bad. I think I want to do another one." Am I thinking that it is going to be easy the next time? I don't think it will ever be easy. As I get better, I will be pushing myself harder, probably making it harder than the previous. I think this is what they call the runner's high. Although I looked that up, and there seems to be some controversy about it.

From Wikipedia:

      A widely publicized effect of endorphin production is the so-called "runner's high," which is said to occur when strenuous exercise takes a person over a threshold that activates endorphin production. Endorphins are released during long, continuous workouts, when the level of intensity is between moderate and high, and breathing is difficult. This also corresponds with the time that muscles use up their stored glycogen. During a release of Endorphin the person may be exposed to bodily harm from strenuous bodily functions after going past their body's physical limit. They may be able to keep running despite pain, and thus possibly come to bodily harm from endorphin release.
      However, some scientists question the mechanisms at work, their research possibly demonstrating the high comes from completing a challenge rather than as a result of exertion.

Whatever the case may be, I still want to do another one. It's a wonder I want to do multiple considering my thoughts during the race, but once I'm done it is rewarding. I don't know when that other one will be. I think one may be enough for this year. I will apply for St. George next year and if I don't get in, then I will take advantage of the third-time's-the-charm program and run in 2011 for sure.

Mistaken Identity.

Unbeknownst to me, there have been quite a few people that have mistaken me for someone else. At the gym I swim at there is a physical therapy office adjacent. There is a girl there that specializes in water therapy. And some of her patients have come up to her and asked her how she changed so quickly. Responding, she asks what they mean. They tell her that they had just seen her swimming a minute ago. She corrects them and tells them that it was not she in the pool. Well, today was the first time in the two-and-a-half years that I have been swimming there on a weekly basis that we have both been in the pool together.

I was having a conversation with another swimmer in the pool, and as this other girl was turning around to do another lap she smiled a me as if in acknowledgement of a common understanding. However, I had no idea what she was smiling in reference to. In fact, I had never spoken to her before. I had only seen her in the pool area giving instructions to other swimmers.

In the locker room, as I was doing my hair, she came up to me and said, "I bet we confused a lot of people today." I still had no idea what she was talking about. She had read my expression of confusion and proceeded to tell me that many of her patients think that I am she. From what I gathered from her, there aren't too many swimmers at the gym that can swim for a long period of time without stopping. She said, "Endurance impresses them." Who would have thought? I can impress people? So, all these people think that I am this other girl based on the fact that we can both swim for more than two laps without stopping. That's a compliment to me because the person I am mistaken for swam competitively in college. She is certainly a lot better than I am.

Well, I have made a new acquaintance as a result of all this. I enjoy meeting new people and hearing their stories. She is from Louisiana and came to Utah for her current job as a physical therapist. She isn't too sold on Utah and is frustrated with the lack of initiative the guys have in regard to dating. (Join the club.) I didn't think she was a member, but she seems to be suffering from the single syndrome as much as the rest of us. Missionary opportunity?!

Are You Kidding Me?

Every day there is new evidence that I am an idiot:
A little before ten o'clock I finally started gathering the things I needed for the big race (SLC half marathon) the next morning. I looked down at the spot on the floor where I keep my running shoes. They weren't there. I checked my gym back. They weren't there either. Those are the ONLY two places I keep my shoes. For good measure, I checked my closet. They weren't there. I checked the car. They weren't there. I checked everywhere else in my room. They weren't there. The only possible thing I could think of was that I had inadvertently left them at the gym. I called. No one answered. Then I realized that the open-24-hours gym that I go to actually closes on weekend nights. I was too late; they had already closed.

In a panic and with terror, I called my good running friend for ideas or advice of what to do. We had planned to carpool down there together, but with my situation as it was, I thought that maybe I should go separately so I could stop by the gym in the morning and pick them up. We both concluded that there would not be enough time to get to the start of the race. Fortuitously, or rather through divine intervention, I had purchased some new shoes just the week before. I had planned to break them in for the next marathon in a month. But, I wanted to test them out on the treadmill before I ran outside to make sure that they would work for me. Well, I sure tested them, but now I've got to keep them.

They say that if you get the right shoe for your feet, you don't really need to break them in. I don't think these are the right shoes. I wore out my abductor digiti minimi muscles in both feet and have a huge blister on the arch of my right foot. It could be that I had just laced them a bit too tightly. If it weren't for the ibuprofen that I took right before I don't think I would have been able to finish. Or, I would have finished, but barefooted.

Considering the circumstance, however, I had one of the best races ever. I beat my goal time by three minutes and I took off more than five minutes from last year's time and more than 13 minutes from my time last month. I was very happy with the result. I just wonder if I would have done better with my regular shoes. Although, there is the possibility, too, that I could have done worse. Yikes.

Lessons learned:
Always have an already-broken-in pair of shoes.
Gather things sooner than the night before.
Never forget ibuprofen.
Be worthy of blessings.

Economic Strategies: Cheapskates.

I should have recognized the downward economic trend years ago. Quite some time ago my mom pointed out to me the deceptive change in product offerings. Dryers, a favorite ice cream in my family, reduced their carton size from a half gallon to 1.75 quarts...without reducing the price. To an unsuspecting customer, the change would not have been noticed. The cartons look nearly the same, just slightly smaller. That's how they increase their profits without alarming their customers of the real but clandestine increase in price. We've boycotted Dryers ice cream ever since. I have eaten it, but I haven't purchased it since I discovered their seedy scheme.

I found a new favorite brand of ice cream. I don't need the well-known brands of ice cream; there are plenty of good ones out there. Instead I turned to Kroger, found at Smith's grocery stores. It's good ice cream and there are lots of varieties and reduced fat and lower sugar options. I was really excited about a month ago when they advertised a good sale on the ice cream. I though I had better stock up. Unfortunately (or fortunately) there was very limited space available in my freezer. When I got to the store, I realized that Kroger, too, has jumped on the band wagon of price veiling. They were in the process of replacing their older packing with newer SMALLER packaging. Following the lead of other brands, they have gone from a half gallon, to 1.75 quarts, and now to 1.5 quarts! What asininity!

Now, if that weren't enough, the cost cutting trend has penetrated other markets as well. It's not just food anymore. Tampons, too! Tampons are now smaller than the previous version. Don't think that I've gone out and brought the wrong size or something. It's the same brand, same packaging, supposedly the same product, now just smaller. If I am going to purchase something that I have tried and liked and become accustomed to, I better be told that the product I depend on is no longer the same. They shouldn't just change the product to avoid having to raise the price. That's misleading. At least with the ice cream containers the size is marked on the container. Tampons are sold by count, not by weight or size. How am I supposed to have known?

When I was in college I thought I would venture on to the MBA program. Fortunately, it is recommend that you work for a couple of years between your undergrad and the master's program. Good thing for that recommendation. I've realized over the years that I want nothing to do with business. I have found that it is a numbers game. How can we make the most profit? Companies don't care about other people as long as they're making the money, and not just some money, the most money they can. With the economy the way it's going, I can't imagine what they will come up with next.

Worst Race Ever.

The Canyonlands half marathon was a race to discourage me from all other races. Fortunately, I had already registered for another half and a full marathon before I had experienced this race, otherwise I may have never wanted to race again. The experiences I had with the SLC half and the St. George marathon was so pleasurable. It would seem a little oxymoronic to think of running for 13.1 or 26.2 miles as pleasurable, but I actually did enjoy it. Time when by quickly; the miles seemed short; I had plenty of breath and energy. The opposite seemed true of this race.

First of all, the race started at 10:00. I've never done a race that started so late. The latest a race had started, that I've done, was at 8:00, and that was just for a 10K. So, for the slower runners (i.e., me) that meant that we were still running at noon! It was ridiculous. On top of the late start, it was hot day. I was so sunburned! What I think happened was that they forgot to compensate for the earlier start of daylight saving time. So, compared to last year it was like we were starting at 11:00! I was not used to the heat, and with water stops only every 2.5 miles, I was dehydrated. At mile five I felt the same way I felt at mile 23 of the St. George marathon. I didn't want to finish. I wanted something to happen as an excuse not to finish. But, finish I did, but not a a good time. I was kind of humiliated with my time. It was a humbling experience. The other races had been so easy that I thought that this would be the same. I knew that if I wanted to improve my time for the SLC half, that I would have to amp up my training. Now, I know I need to push harder.

Now, I can't blame everything on the late start. I will admit that I had not trained for a certain pace. For the last two and a half months I was running at a lower intensity hoping to lose weight, since you burn fat most effectively at a certain target heart rate, which for me happened to be a slower pace. In addition to that, I had the stupid idea of donating blood a week and a half before. Before they take your blood they have you answer certain questions that will determine your eligibility to donate. During that time, I took the opportunity to ask the phlebotomist about the effect of donating on metabolic efficiency. I learned that it is the iron in the blood that carries the nutrients and oxygen to the muscles. By donating blood, I lost a lot of my iron. I knew that donating might have an adverse effect, but I donated anyway because in the past I hadn't notice much of a difference a week out. The next day is obviously a little more taxing, but usually I feel back to normal within three or four days. I also asked the phlebotomist how long it takes to recuperate the lost iron and blood. She said that the reason you can donate only every eight weeks is that doctors believe that it takes that long to replenish what had been taken. That must have played a part in the lack of energy. On top of those things, I did not start off well. The course began downhill so I started faster than I was used to. Plus, I happened to start with a friend who ran faster than I did. I felt like I needed to keep up with her. When I ran the Deseret News 10K, the same thing happened. I started too fast and I wore myself out. I couldn't make it all the way without stopping to walk for a brief time. When I did run, I ran faster, but I couldn't last as long. When I had done the other two races, I started well after the shotgun (because the lines for the bathroom were so long) so there weren't many other people around to influence my rhythm. I have learned to start well after the crowd has started and just do my thing. I think that will help me in the long run.

There were two bright spots to the experience, though. One was that the post race party was great! They had all sort of food: bananas, oranges, apples, bread, chocolate milk, cookies, chocolate, pretzels, peanuts. They didn't have ice cream, but it was still good. Chocolate milk never was so refreshing. And they actually had plenty left when I finished. (When I finished the St. George marathon, there was hardly anything left for me. I did get some ice cream though.) The other good thing was that I took advantage of the Arches National Park. If it weren't for that I would have considered it a waste of a trip. I would have like to have stayed longer, but I was please with what I was able to do.

My friends (Tricia, Heidi, and Phil) and I and another group hiked up to see the Delicate Arch, the arch that is displayed on the Utah centennial license plates and on much of Utah propaganda. The sign at the beginning of the hike said it was 1.5 miles. It felt more like 2.5, but after the days activities, that shouldn't be surprising. It was a little more strenuous than I had anticipated, but I am very glad I did it. I would have missed out on one of the amazing natural creations that many never have a chance to see. And my camera battery lasted just long enough.





Overall, it was a great trip, humbling but fun.

Today I Joined the Polar Bear Club.

I have been thinking about changing my schedule a bit, somewhat part of a new year's resolution. I have been in quite the habit of working out after work. At the time it was better after work because I had more time. After a while that wasn't really the case. Things kept creeping into my schedule at night, and it was such a pain because I had to "get ready" twice a day. To reduce the vain repetition I typically just didn't get ready for work. I didn't do my make-up or my hair. After all, who do I have to impress there? But then, by the end of the day, I didn't feel like "getting ready" either because I knew I would be going to bed in just a few hours. It made sense to me to just work out in the morning and be ready for the whole day; the results of my "getting ready" would be optimized. So, starting this week I have been working out in the mornings. And I've loved it. The days seem so much longer; I feel like I have more time; and I don't feel so slovenly.

Being the efficient person that I am, I shower at the gym instead of going all the way home to shower. It is a little inconvenient because I have to be very careful to bring absolutely everything that I need. If I forget underwear, I'm in trouble. Well, today, as I walked into the bathroom to put my belongings in the locker, I was greeted with a sign that read, "No hot water in the showers. Sorry for the inconvenience." So for the next two hours as I was working out, I debated whether I should take the extra time, gas, and mileage to go home to have a warm shower. I decided that I could do it. And do it I did! I remembered one morning on my mission when the mamita was mad at us and turned off the calefactor. It wasn't pleasant, but it was manageable.

This was my trick. I faced the shower head to the wall and leaned over to wash my hair, trying to keep my body out of the water. That way I could stay dry as long as possible. And dry meant not as cold. By the time I was done with that, the temperature wasn't such a shock, and I could finish up. While it wasn't completely unbearable, I would still rather choose a warm shower. There are so many little things that I take for granted and don't recognize their worth until the convenience it taken away.