Keepin It Goin!

Oh man, does it feel good when I'm on the right track, even if it's just for the day. I did not get the l.5 miles in on Wednesday... instead I did something much more fun. I signed up for Big Brothers Big Sisters a few months ago. Wednesday was the first time that I got to hang out with my "little". He rules. He's smart, funny, and FILLED with energy. I think I may have gotten in the 1.5 miles just running after him. Actually... it's pretty funny because he asked me if we could run around the track for a bit. I was like, "Did someone put you up to this?" The truth is he just likes to run, which is cool. I'm already seeing that I will be getting a lot out of this relationship. We SPRINTED two laps around the track, and he is fast! And he's a tiny guy, too; so he's ducking and dodging people, running around and in between them. And I look like a frickin goofball trying to do the same thing. HAHAHA! After the track, we spent the rest of our time hanging out, throwing a ball around, and talking about all the fun things we're going to do this summer. Needless to say, Wednesday was an awesome day (and I even got a little speed workout in, too).

Yesterday, in New York, it was raining... and then it wasn't... then it was... then it wasn't... then it still wasn't... then it was... The moment I saw a gap where I could squeeze in a run after work, I took it. I ran a little more than a mile at about a 9:00 pace (I think). It was a little weird because I left my ipod at work, and I had no running partner. I tried to make due with the music on my phone, but it kept skipping. Before I threw it against a rock and smashed it into a million pieces because it's annoying as shit to listen to a song with pauses every two seconds, I shut the music off and just ran. From all the stuff I've been reading, runners say that it's good to run without music every now and then because you start to notice and recongnize things that you normally would not while listening to music - like breathing, the sounds of your foot steps, cars honking at you... you know, the good stuff.

So, I'm definitely not there, yet. I was still kind of pissed that I had no music (like a little baby) and I started to talk to myself in my head. Now, I'm not crazy (not enough to be committed anyhow). However, I do have quite a few things going on in my life. It's all good things. I'm really quite blessed, but sometimes the stack can get a little tall. I don't think it's a good time to create my schedule for the next week and a giant to-do list in my head while I'm running. One of the things that I like about my runs is that my mind goes a little blank. It's like I'm taking a mini-vacation from my normal life and going to the magical land of pacing myself while listening to music. HAHAHA! I believe I will continue to listen to my music for a while longer. Eventually, I see myself practicing doing more runs with just me, myself and I.

Today, I plan on doing an upper-body workout. I gotta get this in because I've missed it for (about) a month. I have a $10/month membership at a gym; but if I don't get up early and go before work, the gym gets so packed, like Times Square on New Years. I can't deal with a lot of people. I'm not claustrophobic by any means, but I'm easily irritated when I'm around a lot of people who just go to the gym to hang out and sit on machines. A 30-minute workout should not take two hours. I went out and bought a really good set of dumbbells for $200. I can alternate the weight on the dumbbells and everything. It's pretty sweet. I purchased these items with the best intentions. I was going to workout every other day... get myself nice and jacked before the summer. Well, summer is here; I'm not jacked; and I'm not being too nice to myself because I keep skipping my workouts. I promise to get this workout in today. I gotta throw a wrench in this routine of bailing on commitments to myself. I can probably get nice and jacked for the winter, which really comes in handy when you live in New York. I guess being jacked is overrated in the long run. It's about being healthy. I can be cool with that... a six pack would be nice though. HAHAHA! WHATEVER!!! I have a hot girlfriend that loves my love handles! BOOM!

Goals for the weekend:
Friday - Upper-body workout
Saturday - 1 mile at 9:00 pace
Sunday - 1.5 miles at 10:00 pace

I'm three weeks away from my first 5K and 18 weeks away from my first 10K. I have my training schedule from now to then finalized. I will post it sometime in the near future. Any pointers? I'm open to trying new things.

Thanks.