Here I go again!

Happy new year everyone!

I started this blog in 2009 to follow my old blog (argentinerocket.fastrunningblog.com) from 2008, because I wanted the triathlete format.

Can you think of a better way to start the new year than biking 30 miles along the Skyline Drive, in Shenandoah National Park? I can't! It was a VERY cold but very clear day. A bunch of my friends and I rented a cabin near Shenandoah to spend a few days relaxing and have a nice New Year's eve party. Today they went horseback riding but Will and I wanted to exercise so we went on a nice bikeride. It was so cold I was worried my toes were going to freeze! Thankfully we made it back safe. Here's a picture of the first day of the best year of my life!

Another gorgeous day in Shenandoah. My cabin roommates went to three wineries to get wine tastings and tours, and Will and I went hiking and biking. Will used to be a fast runner but he's been dealing with plantar fasciitis issues and hasn't run in the past couple of years - he may be getting a sort of surgery to fix it, but until then he's a very talented biker and can do some hiking without pain.  

Yeah, no running... lazy... I know...

Hiked 7 miles on yet ANOTHER absolutely beautiful day in Shenandoah, before heading back to DC and facing the real world... The past few days were so great, surrounded by lots of fun friends doing lots of eating and playing games. Too much fun!

No exercise today. Not feeling too great but have been reflecting on the new year and what I want for it on my life. Here's a short list of what I'd like to do in 2009:

1. Run a Spring/Summer marathon and qualify for Boston 2010
2. Complete a triathlon
3. Complete a mountain bike race
4. Stay injury-free and accident-free!
5. Cross-train more: do a spin class once a week and swim more frequently
6. Eat healthier

In the non-athletic area, I'd like to:

- Do well in 3 of my master's classes
- Take my nieces on a nice winter (july in Argentina) vacation
- Do lots of camping and backpacking
- Mountain bike in Colorado

Anyone want to share your new year's resolutions?

A beautiful beautiful beautiful beautful day in DC.

Biked to work, then biked to the gym, then tried to run on the dreadmill but my stupid stupid stupid stupid shins felt super tight and sore, so I moved on to the elliptical machine and did some hard-core intervals for 30 minutes, then some weights, and biked home, having to go alll around the White House cause all the streets around were fenced in, preparing for innauguration.  

Not a good day, but hey, it could always be worse.

Forecast called for freezing rain so I didn't bike - but it was just rain, not really icy, so I should've biked. I'm getting a cold too, so not feeling too well. I was going to go to the gym but decided to get rest instead. Lazybum! My knee also hurts - I heard a crack during one of my many falls while skiing in Colorado a few weeks ago, and that's exactly where it hurts so it may be something related to that. I doubt it's anything serious.

So, I put my gym clothes and a jacket in my backpack and took the metro to work. After work, I knew I should go to the gym... but I needed a mental break and really really really wanted to run outside in the freezing rain. So I decided to run home from work. The thing is, I realized I only had shorts, not pants. But as most of you know I'm as stubborn as a big square rock in the Appalachian Trail, so I decided to run home anyway... The first mile was alright, feeling good, looking tough, loving it... The second mile I started to get pretty cold - my upper body was fine but my quads felt really cold and wet... my shins were so cold that they didn't hurt, which was nice for a change... Yup, my quads were cold... at that moment, Sheryl Crow and her "I'm gonna soak up the sun" came on my mp3 player... can you believe that song really warmed me up? I started singing it out loud, cause there was nobody around anyway... yeah, I was that crazy person you see running outside in shorts soaking wet shivering and singing... As I started feeling even colder and the rain started turning into ice, I knew no matter how tough I was, it wouldn't be smart to try to make it home. So I decided to try and make it to the next metro, Smithsonian. With only about 1/3 a mile there, the Bee Gees came on and their "Stayin' Alive" - yeah, I was going to be OK, thanks to the Bee Gees!. I saw other crazy runners also in shorts around the Washington Monument. Yeah, we're all tough. Finally made it to the metro and warmed up, and made it home.

I need to be smarter about these things. Now I really have a cold. Wah-waaahhhhh!

Another cold and rainy day in DC. I think I'm getting a cold so decided to metro to work. After work I was feeling better and determined to "sweat out" the cold, so I ran to the gym, did a 1-hour spin class, and ran home in the rain. Right shin hurt and felt tight, but taking walking breaks helped. Stretched really well afterwards and did lots of strengthening exercises.

Sick as a dog... but running helped me feel better. Going to the doc tomorrow. Probably will get antibiotics. Shins felt much better, I've got Barry's stretches to thank - I've been doing more of the post-run step leg raises and they seem to be working. Woohoo! (cough, sneeze)

4.2 miles, from the Library of Congress down to the Washington Monument and around and back - met up with Trick who just got a  new job at the LOC.

Still feeling sick, worse than before - went to the doctor this morning but he said he thought it was a virus and not a bacterial infection so he prescribed "time" and no antibiotics. Bummer, but I guess it's a good thing... Hopefully this viral infection will go away soon!

Shins felt tender but not nearly as painful as before - Barry, yo da man!

This bug is super strong - sick again this morning, called in to work and all - but then the painters showed up at my house. Ughhh.... I knew if they didn't finish painting today they never would finish, so I let them come in and ended up going to work after all.

Funny story but also kind of cute... I e-mailed the guy I'm dating this morning telling him I wasn't feeling well and had called in sick to work and would stay home resting - but then I ended up going to work... Well, around noon I get a call and it was him, calling from my house; he had shown up in my house during his lunch break to surprise me to give me a hug and some soup! Even though it didn't work out as planned, it was such a nice thought on his part... Goodness, I can't remember the last time anyone did anything so nice for me...

I'm feeling better - maybe can actually run a bit tomorrow!

Feeling MUCH better.

I was about to hit the gym when I decided to run home from the office instead - boy was it COLD! 20 degrees, but according to weather dot com, with the chilly wind it felt like 10... To my quads, it felt like 40 below! But I made it all the way.

Was going to run after work but things got too crazy and I couldn't get out in time - went to see West Side Story to the National Theatre, it was such a good play! The lead actress is from Argentina and you could say I'm biased, but she was FABULOUS!

Got up early to meet up with my friend Greg and ride up to Seven Springs resort in Pennsylvania - my friends and I rented a condo up there for the weekend to do some skiing and have fun - fellow blogger Aaron (Running with Pepper) was among them, with our friend Tricia being the lead of the pack and Trick also with us. What a fun bunch! Lazy day, didn't do much, checked out the resort after hanging out with everyone and then went tubing. Tubing was so much fun! We did a bunch of little races among us and I was almost the winner every time except for twice when I got beaten by Trick. Then it was back to the condo for a  crazy night of playing games, singing and dancing - I got to see a side of Aaron that I hadn't seen before, let me tell you, this guy has some serious moves! What a fun day!

No running again as I was up in Pennsylvania again - skied all day - Out of the 9 people in our group, one was injured and didn't ski, the other six were super good skiers and they stayed together and did some black diamonds and double black diamonds, and I was the only chicken of the group who had to stick with the green and blue slopes... wah-wahhhh! My knee was bothering me a little too (same spot that hurt after falling once in Aspen over Christmas but doesn't bother me when I run or bike - not sure what's the deal there) so it was good to keep it low key. The snow conditions were great for the east coast, but nothing compared with Aspen... pretty good but some patches of ice that make you lose control pretty fast. After a full day of skiing we got to rent an outdoor hot tub and we all got to relax for a while there before having some dinner (I was too tired and headed home) and we all went home and crashed.

Another day of no running, as some of the group went skiing and some of us went back home... what a fun weekend this was! I was very emotional realizing how random that group of people was, and how well we all got along and had tons of fun. Most of us there were runners so I know we'll see each other in races in the near future. And of course I owe the blog to meeting the wonderful life-of-the-party Aaron and through him the super fun Amy. I'm sure more camping trips, hiking trips, and running adventures await to all of us!

FINALLY some miles! Inauguration fun all day - I stayed away from the crowds and watched it at home with my friend Sangeeta - it was very emotional to see the crowds, the first Black president, the first president I voted for and is going into office since I became a U.S. citizen, the entire country coming together in support of a new head of state, with great hopes that he will listen to the people and do his best to help the economy, the war, and so many other things that we need to fix right now!

After watching the speech and parade I headed out to the Congressional Cemetery for a few easy miles. Feeling pretty good! Now off to do my stretches! It's going to be a great week full of quality miles!

Ok people, as I begin feeling better about my running relatively pain-free, I'm having an itch about my future plans... Yes indeed I want to run a BQ relatively soon, believe it or not...

The semester starts on Monday (yes, I am back in school after taking the summer and fall off...) and I'll be taking only one class and supposedly a very easy one. So, I should have time to train properly and hopefully run a marathon at the end of April or sometime in May. That way I'll have the summer off to take another class and do some low-key running and maybe some biking races and triathlons.

The question is, which marathon to run. Any suggestions? I'm willing to travel... I'm looking at Ogden, Salt Lake, Moab, Fort Collins, Capital City (WA), Coeur D'Alene? Of course I have to find out about all of those, if they're flat and if they're BQ, and if I can get in... Any other suggestions?

The plan is to get serious and start increasing mileage starting today, but unlike last year, I will run mostly 40-mile weeks, and maybe one or two 50-mile weeks at the peak of training, but not more than that to avoid injury. Focus on quality over quantity, do some speed work and interval work. I will also cross-train at least two days a week - at the gym (spin and weights) biking or swimming, and that's on top of my bike commute. Something like this:

Mon: bike to work/back; recovery jog (3-4 miles)
Tue: 5-10 miles; intervals (to work and/or back)
Wed: bike to work/back; spin class
Thu: 5-10 miles (to work and/or back)
Fri: 5-10 miles; speed work (to work and/or back)
Sat: long bike ride with Will
Sun: long run

So my questions to you fellow bloggers are:
1. Do you think a 40, sometimes 50-mile week would be enough training to run a BQ marathon?
2. Any suggestions on which marathons to run or avoid?

Thank you guys! happy running!

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Ran home from work, 6 miles, the long way. It was bizarre to run on the mall that is now completely empty, when yesterday it was completely full of people! Shins hurt a bit but not too bad. Doing some core work and stretches/strengthening now as I get ready to go to bed - good night!

Biked to work, biked to the Smithsonian after work and met up with the Capitol Striders for a group run around the mall. It's fun running with people once in a while, but I've realized I really enjoy running by my self or with just one or two good friends - not really a group person unless it's a race...

On the way back home I realized I had dropped a glove... so I went back to get it. Surprisingly, it was there still! Lucky me!

Shins hurt a bit more than they have been... not sure if I'll run tomorrow...

TGIF everyone!

Planned on going on a long bike ride with Will in Loudon County, near Leesburg. We got there and started climbing these gynormous hills on this beautiful country landscape on a very cold morning, but unfortunately the gravel road had just been turned and it was not suitable for my hybrid bike. Very sad. So we turned around after a few miles and went on the paved W&OD trail. Then Will wanted to turn around cause he wasn't feeling well - it's his birthday today so I kept making jokes about getting old and not being able to bike as much. I don't think that helped ;) Went out to dinner and had some friends over for cake at night and to sing him happy birthday. 

A beautiful and cold morning in DC - 26 degrees - brrrrrrr. Met up with Tricia, Trick, and Greg R for a quick track workout, but not really. We just did a few laps around to warm up, and then we timed each other on a 400 meter sprint and an 800 meter sprint. I think I did 1:26 in the 400 meters and 3:37 on the 800 meters. I want to see if I improve in the next month or so. I heard about this Yasso workout to predict your marathon time: do 4 800-meter workouts with one lap to cool down in between, and average the times. If you average 3 minutes 30 seconds, it translates to a 3 hour 30 minutes marathon, if you average 4 minutes 10 seconds, you'll run a 4 hour 10 minute marathon, etc. We ran a total of 3 miles on the track, and then I ran home from there, after a quick stop at the Latin American store to pick up some dulce de leche to make ice cream - yummm! I felt pretty tired on the way - so tired that I went into the men's bathroom at the Lincoln Memorial. I didn't realize until I came out and saw the urinals (there was nobody there thank goodness!) and was soooooo embarrassed! This woman saw me and just kept laughing at me. Oh well... Didn't make it all the way home, didn't want to over-do it, so I got on the metro at Smithsonian for some 5 miles more. A good day overall. Shins hurt but not too bad. Did strengthening and stretching. 

Metroed to work (lazy and coldish...) A cloudy and flurry day in DC - 26 degrees. Cold, but no wind so not too bad. Met my fabulous friend Ashley for a lunchtime run, she's a bit slower than me so it'd be perfect for a recovery jog. We did a nice loop by the river/Lincoln Memorial/Kennedy Center. Shins hurt a little but not too bad. So happy.

Six unplanned miles on beautiful snowy DC... Here's the silly adventure: I wanted to go to Pentagon City to buy some yaktrax so I could run in the ice tomorrow. My plan was to go to spin class, then hop on the metro, get the yaktrax, and go home and maybe try them for a few miles. Then at the last minute my boss asked me to proofread something, so I wasn't able to make it to the spin class. So I decided maybe i could run to Pentagon City - the thing is that there is no good and nice way to get there from Georgetown. So I decided I'd run to Arlington Cemetery, and then metro to Pentagon City. Well, I forgot that the Arlington Cemetery stop closes earlier than others... it closes at 7 pm during weekdays. I looked at my cell phone when I got to the metro stop and it said 7:01, I kid you not. My shins were hurting so I knew it wasn't a good idea to keep running, but it was so nice out, and and and I am so stupid, so I kept on keeping on, and ran all the way around the Mt. Vernon trail through the airport through Crystal City and into Pentagon City and got my famous yaktrax. The whole thing would've taken me 30 minutes if I had just hopped on the metro at once, but nooooooooo, I wanted to run... My shins hurt pretty bad after the first mile, but the last 3 miles were a lot better. Did lots of strengthening and some stretching at home.

So icy and wet out there, how could I not run? I had to try my new yaktrax after all! And they were awesome! Ran from the office to the Rock Creek Parkway, cross the Memorial Bridge on the Mt. Vernon trail, and back to Georgetown via the Key bridge and the C&O canal, muddy and almost completely frozen over - saw some ducks walking and slipping on the ice, very funny! I thought they were supposed to travel South in the winter? silly ducks...

Shins didn't hurt too bad, but I probably shouldn't run tomorrow... sooooo hard not to run!!!!

Yeah, a mile is a mile, right? Stayed at work late and ran to the gym to meet up with my friend Bryon, who I haven't seen in a long time - funny thing, we were both sitting at our respective desks, him in downtown and me in Georgetown, thinking that we both really wanted to go out for a run but shouldn't, him for his injured calf, me for my shin splints (and I ran the last 4 days in a row)... so I suggested we meet up at the gym for some biking and catching up, and to keep each other from hurting ourselves from running injured! Too funny. Bryon is an ultrarunner, he's finished the Western States 100 miler twice (25th place both times, I believe) and many many other ultras, and he's currently training to complete the Marathon Des Sables, a super tough stage race in the Sahara. He just finished a snowshoe adventure from West Yellowstone to Mamoth Springs in 3 days. Amazing! It was great to catch up with him while I did some interval work on the bike. Stretched really well and did some of the shin strengthening exercises. My shin hurts a lot right now, even though I didn't run. Bummer. Not sure what to do tomorrow. Really wanted to run to work.

After work, attempted to go on a 6-mile run on the C&O canal, but it was too icy, so I did the bridges instead. A cold but crisp evening. Nice. Shins hurt but I could handle it ok...

Went to the gym with Will this morning, did 15 min on the bike, 15 min on the eliptical, 15 mins on the stairmaster and 15 minutes of arm workouts that he showed me so I get some tank top-worthy arms by this summer :)