Random Musings - Need Some Holiday Cheer?

I went for a run yesterday. I ran 2.5 miles or somewhere around there, I don't really know. I'm pretty sure I can run infinitely as long as I don't worry about how fast I go. If I take the next day off I shouldn't have to worry about my tendons. We'll see how that works out for me.

There's this little nature trail by my house that I've walked part of before but I have never explored all the offshoots. I don't have any idea how long it is but it's like a little piece of trail running tucked away just for me. I will try to get out and take some pictures tomorrow. It's a nice little trail, I'm not sure why I hadn't ran it previously.

It's staying dark later and getting dark earlier these days. I'm fine with running in the dark, but not so much running in the dark while pushing a jogging stroller. So my options are really I can either get up early and run before work (yea, I'm going to be honest.. that's probably never going to happen) or I can run right after work - bleh.

I'm going to work on it though. I've been trying to limit/cut my processed carbs I eat at work because they seem to drain the life out of me.

Something else I've been thinking about, and I will probably re-vist this in the weeks to come. . .

I'm not really a fan of the holiday season. I always viewed them as being for families, and I didn't have one. I used to always volunteer to work every holiday - I'd offer to work a double that day. I didn't have anything else to do, and other people should be able to be with their families because they are lucky to have them. Holidays always just depressed me and made me feel extremely isolated and lonely.

Even now, they sort of just remind me of all that I am or was lacking. Reflecting on things familial are just sort of saddening to me.

There's no reason for anyone to feel that way.

So my friends, this is my offer to you.


If you'd like to receive a holiday card from me, just let me know. I know it's not much - but everyone deserves to know that someone, somewhere took 5 minutes out of their day to think of them - even if it's from the most unlikely of places.
I'll even take a step farther - If you know someone else that could use a little extra holiday cheer this season, I'll send them one too.

Running in the Rain

Sunday I managed to make it to REI to get a headlamp. So Sunday night I went for my first night time in the rain run.

and it was awesome. 

I took music, put on an upbeat tune (It was Matt and Kim, but I don't really remember what track? I think it was block after block but you should also check out daylight, and cameras by them.. I'll link at the bottom. And you're welcome in advance!)

I had a good pace (couldn't tell you what since I didn't look at the clock) and my legs were moving on their own as I was rocking out. Stuck with just 2 miles since I hadn't ran in a while.

There's a certain amount of freedom that the dark brings. It's so much easier to just pretend the rest of the world doesn't exist when it's just you, the darkness, your light and some music. An added bonus is that you can really tell if you're being all sorts of bobbly when you're running with a light on your head. As I was gliding along my light made a steady line, no jerky up and down movement. Sweet. And it was raining, which made it just that much more fun.

I know a lot of people dread getting out in the rain, but I love the rain.

You don't live in Seattle if you don't have a certain amount of affection for the rain. After living in Arizona for 1.5 years.. I LOVE the rain. I don't love the downpours type rain the rest of the country seems to get, but the misty don't even really notice it rain we have here, is wonderful.

The Difference Between Good Runs And Bad Runs

I tend to not do enough of the 'essential to life' things such as eating, sleeping and drinking water. To be honest, most of the time it doesn't occur to me that I need to do them. I go without eating until I'm lightheaded/cranky/starving to death, I go without sleep until I realize it's late and I should probably go to sleep (one of the reasons I keep a scheduled afternoon nap!), and I've had days where I can't remember drinking a single drop of liquid.

Now I know none of these things are good and I try my best to be conscious of them. Recently though, I started to notice a trend.

My 'bad' runs (where my legs felt heavy and movements felt forced, the ones where I'd feel my lungs cramp up) occurred after days of less than stellar hydration. Duh.

Since I've been really paying attention to my water intake my last few runs have been much better, I'm still sticking to two miles, but hope to be able to increase it soon.

Twin Falls And Random Musings

Last Friday we took a short hike to Twin Falls. We have actually done this hike in the past, but it wasn't a very good experience for me and we didn't make it to the second fall. It was last year, I was still nursing the baby, hadn't eaten, was carrying him on my back and it was hot. Not a very good combination. This time around was much better. 

It's an easy hike with two waterfall views (hence the name). What we didn't know was that apparently the trail you follow continues going pretty much forever. Our friend was with us and was able to pull up our GPS coordinates on his smart phone which told us that we had left the park we had started in. 

Cell phones. They're such a fine line to balance. People are naked without them, can't go without checking them, must respond the moment someone beckons. A third of the time I forget to charge my phone, another third I don't know where it is and the final third it's likely sitting around my house somewhere. I occasionally talk to one of my best friends over in NY and on a rare occasion my sister will call me when driving home later in the evening because I'm the only person she knows that will still be up. Other than that I talk to and text my husband, and I also occasional text said best friend. All my other communicating is done online. 

Oh yea, and my phone is a go phone... yup. You read that right. The only thing my phone does is text and call. There is beauty in the simplicity.

Our Spot For Lunch

Anyway, once we realized we had gone too far (we were on a limited time schedule and our very smart friend had hurt his knee recently... more on that in a moment) we turned back and found a spot down by the river to enjoy some lunch (Rotini + Chicken + Kidney beans + Red Onion + Roasted Red Pepper Dressing + a little Salt and pepper) before heading back. 

Our Friends Knee.... 

Well.. lets see... he decided to go for a run. He was once a runner. Then he became a smoker. After about a year of being a smoker, he decided he wasn't a smoker anymore. He's now trying to become a runner again. Good for him! 

He decided to go for a quick 15 minute run between studying for his classes. He just moved to a new apt and was exploring the new area. He got lost... 

8 miles later he found his way home. (or so he says. .I bet it was more like 4 from the area he was describing) 

Needless to say......  The next day his knees hurt. A lot. Both of them. A few days later he sends a text asking if we're on to go hiking the next day. We say sure. He shows up with a knee brace on. *le sigh* He was hurting by the end of the hike but was still planning on doing some stair climbing later in the week... 

A reminder that doing too much too soon will come back to bite you every time. 

Hiking in Luna Sandals

Today we hiked Cedar Butte again. We wanted a quick hike, and rattlesnake ridge still seemed overly busy, so we opted for the familiar. I wore my Luna sandals with the felted wool laces and it's amazing how different of an experience it was and how much more you notice the terrain.

There were more rocks then I remembered, and more tree roots. It was amazing how much the plants had grown since our last visit. My feet were comfortable and protected enjoying the air between my toes. On the way down I had burst of trots down the trail, bending my knees and allowing my feet to navigate the ground.

On our way back we crossed paths with an older couple, and the women asked about my shoes.

"How do you walk in those, they're so flat!" 

I just smiled and replied that was the point. To be able to feel the ground beneath and have natural foot movement. My feet felt great at the end (which is more then I can say for after our last hike when snow on the trail forced me to wear shoes, which blistered my heels and made my toenails sore) and I was delighted to see my footprint wearing itself into the sandal - all the wear exactly where it should be, a perfect footprint.

On a different note, yesterday I got a pair of racing flats (fairly minimal, about a 4mm - 5mm heel drop, no inside support) to have as a transitional shoe. Lately in my normal everyday shoes, my heels have been going numb. My body isn't ready to full transition yet, so when my feet start feeling fatigued or sore I make sure to give them the support. I decide to try running in them, to see if I would be able to maintain a forefoot/midfoot foot strike ( I have tried in 'traditional' running shoes to do so, and failed pretty miserably).

In the flats I as able to maintain my forefoot/midfoot strike, and so I ran - a mile - and I timed myself .. for the first time in 10 years, I ran a 7 minute mile - and I wasn't even pushing that hard. As a matter of fact, I probably could have kept going. My biggest obstacle to running hasn't been muscle fatigue or injury in the past. I've still yet to experience any muscle soreness. It's always been my lungs - even after biking across the country I couldn't go far without getting winded- so to be able to feel like I could keep going is a huge achievement for me. Afterward I took my shoes off and walked most of the way home because I want to make sure I don' t over do it - but I sure did feel good.

Luna Sandals

On the left is the Recyclado on the right is the original Luna
(Yes, my skin really is that fair)

Today we went to pick up our Luna Sandals. I had mentioned in my previous post that I ordered a pair for myself and for my two year old son. Well, it turns out there was some confusion when the orders went through and they had made both pairs (one was the original luna with 1/2 inch equus elasticized laces for me and the other was a Recyclado with 3/8 elasticized laces for him) in my size. They won't be offering the Recyclado version of the Lunas any longer. 

They were very nice and simply offered to make it right then while we were there, and so we went for a little stroll around the neighborhood. Their sale was apparently a big hit, and they were currently out of supplies and awaiting the arrival of their shipment to get working on the hundreds of orders they had to process, but able to make his tiny sandals out of the left over scrap pieces. They also let me take the extra pair that they had made custom to my feet.

The littlest Lunatic?

While there at the front were the first pair of sandals that Barefoot Ted Mcdonald made in the copper canyons (as told in the book born to run). I can't even imagine the amount of running you would have to do to wear those things out, but one thing is for sure, you wouldn't be getting poked by any rock through those.

The 'factory' is located in a beautiful space with a lot of natural light. It's a simply room that  consists of little more then some tools for cutting and gluing (which include a tree stump), a few computer desks, a rack for raw supplies, and a table with a fruit bowl in the center.

My first impression of the sandals were that they were different then any sandal I had ever worn. They hug your feet and continue to when your foot bends. The leather almost immediately begins forming to your foot. When I took them off after our short walk around the neighborhood, you could already see the indentations from my big toe, and my forefoot. The toe divider is going to take some getting used to for me, but after some fiddling around with it this afternoon, I think I have figured out my comfort zone.

Original Luna (left)  Recyclado (right)
Also, notice the ever so slight difference in the arches of my right and left foot.

The knot underneath the original lunas didn't bother me at all. I can feel the one under the recyclado more, but even so, not really bothersome. The different thickness in laces makes a huge difference in the feel of the sandals and makes me want to experiment with different types. I was thinking of making some out of a felted wool icord - I think that would hold up fabulously, be cheap, easy and any color I want. Wool has the benefit over other materials like hemp in that as the fibers break, friction and heat will make them fuse together (felt) and become stronger. Its’ often said that a single fiber of wool is stronger than a single fiber of steel of the same diameter. 

My tendons have been feeling 100% better for the past two days so tomorrow I am going to go for a short (very short) run. 

Currently Reading

As I take the time to rest my ankles I've got two books I'm currently reading/browsing. I'll admit that chances are pretty slim that I'm going to read ever word of either of these books, and it's far more likely that I'm going to just skim them and then continue to reference them as I continue on my journey.

The first is 

 

Jason was nice enough to set up a free download for the e-file here

The second is 

 

 

I love the fact that this book has so many pictures in it showing you the different motions. There are a lot of drills to help perfect form and strengthen and stretch in areas most needed for good form barefoot running. I can't wait to be able to try some.