Motivated to Succeed

11:00 AM - Blustery and cold. Temperature was only 5 degrees above zero when I started my jog. This was the first run I've done in my new orthotics and I like them already. I didn't have any pains in my feet when I was jogging with them, although I was out of breath by the end and my quads hurt a bit right now. I went running from my dad's school on the back roads and back. Felt pretty good.

Got to thinking on my run about the year ahead. As it is now 2009 and a new year is upon us I have mixed feelings about the last year. I feel like I lost a year of running, but I gained much more. I gained a new perspective about what it means to live life. One's life is not determined nor remembered by what awards he or she earns, or how many races he or she runs, but my one's approach to each opportunity that is presented to them. As such I have only modest goals for this year. I know that I have the heart of a lion, the strength of a tiger, and the persistence of a very ornery long distance runner. Splits for today's run were:

Total Time: 26:25 Total Distance: 3.0 mi  Average Pace: 8:47/ mi

Benn's 2009 Goals:

1. Enjoy each and every run

2. Train for and complete my third marathon

3. Bike from my house in NY to Emma's in MA

4. Bike a century (100mi)

5. Enjoy our family vacation in summer of 2009 to Yellowstone and Grand Teton and Glacier National Parks

6. Lose 10 pounds

7. Run, bike, and hike every chance I have with Emmy.

I know that I have a long way to go on my way to recovery, but I think that 2009 will be a much better year than 2008 for me running wise. I'm saying upfront it's okay if I don't meet all these goals, but it's good nonetheless to have goals in mind when starting the new year, no?

 3:20 PM - I worked until 3pm today ( a short day I know!). Emmy went home after two days here for New Years. Boo :(. But I brought my jogging stuff with me to work and changed in the parking lot in my car and drove over to Spa Park. It was deserted! It was weird because usually that place is packed with people. The last week and a half we've had over 2 feet of snow though so the only people I saw were a handful of cross country skiiers and a lady walking her dog. My legs were tired. My quads are a little sore. Today's run was a pretty good run though. It was fun to go running in the snow. Splits were:

• Mile 1: 8:58
• Mile 2: 9:06
• Mile 3: 8:44
• Mile 4: 8:41

Total Time: 35:46 Total Distance: 4.03 mi Average Pace: 8:53

Other good news.. Weight is down 4 pounds since the beginning of the week on Sunday!

9:25 AM - Temperature was a lot warmer than yesterday. A "balmy" 25 degrees. Sunny which was nice. Only downer was the wind @ 15-20 mph. Coming back was a workout. Really enjoyed the run though and it was funny but the soreness in my quads seemed to just melt away while I was running, though it's returned. You never realize how many muscles the human body has, nor how many you don't use on a daily basis until something like orthotics makes it so you use all your muscles. Now I feel like a couch potato out of shape lard butt :(. Came to two realizations today as I was running. The first was that I like the feel of the full orthotics as compared to my old 3/4 length ones. My feet feel meshed to the shoe and the shoe feels more connected to my foot if that makes sense. Secondly, though I am significantly heavier than this time a year ago, I feel much stronger than last year already. I think that all the biking wasn't just something to do in the meantime, but rather was an investment in my future runs. Let's hope this good luck continues! Splits were:

• Mile 1: 8:46
• Mile 2: 8:22
• Mile 3: 8:12

Total Time: 25:23 Total Distance: 3 mi Average Pace: 8:26

11:20 AM - Temperature was about 22 degrees, sunny, and Caribbean blue skies today. Perfect day for a run. Today was Epiphany Sunday in church and the whole family went including my cousin Kara and her two little girls Maggie and Annika who have been up all weekend. I really enjoyed the service and thought about what our minister talked about. I am truly blessed to have everything that I have in life today. I have a wonderful family, an amazing fiancee, and so many opportunities to be thankful for. I truly am a lucky guy! Went jogging on the backroads from my dad's school to Crane Rd. and back. Quads are still sore, but feeling stronger. Just wanted to do 3 miles. Emma is at a bridal convention thing with her mom this morning in Pittsfield so I can't wait to hear all about it. I guess we are registered to win $1000 or something out of the people that go so that's neat. Splits were strong on the run today. Roads were almost clear so that was a huge factor. Stretched afterwards. Splits were:

• Mile 1: 8:43
• Mile 2: 8:34
• Mile 3: 7:58!

Total Time: 25:19 Total Distance: 3.01 mi Average Pace: 8:25

9:30 AM - Rainy, sleety freezing rain this a.m. delayed almost every school district so my brothers got an extra couple of hours of their winter break. I decided to drive to Emma's hosue since it was my day off today. The normal 75 minute drive took me an extra 40 minutes today, but it was worth it. Emma and I had a jogging date in her basement, her on the elliptical machine as she is still nursing a sore right ankle from her tumble the Wednesday before Thanksgiving, and me on the treadmill. I ran at 2% grade the whole time, and even though I was running 10:00+ per mile pace the entire time, I still got a workout! Felt great though :) Stretched afterwards. Happy Monday all!

Total Time: 35:00 Total Distance: 3.37 mi Average Pace: 10:23/ mi

10:00 AM - So funny thing.. it turns out that Emma was keeping a secret from me! At the wedding expo the other day she ended up winning something, which she surprised me with! It was a 1-night guest pass to the Crown Hotel and Resort in Pittsfield where her sister works! She won it (retails at about $200 a night!). And she also had a gift certificate for dessert, so we enjoyed some nice desert a la mode (well okay mainly just me because Emma only wanted an apple), and then we watched a movie upstairs in the room before passing out. This morning we had a workout date in the weight room which was really nice. I felt like a movie star because you can only get access to the workout room and pool area with a swipe card! It's cool because a lot of famous people stay out here, i.e. the dad from American Pie series was there for a couple months this past fall, and all the other "Taking Woodstock" stars were there as well. It was still sinking in this morning as we were getting ready to checkout by noon. Before we left we grabbed a dip in the swimming pool. It was so cool though to be essentially the only ones there! As it's the off season no one really goes there. I got to see Emma's Aunt Sandy and her cousin Alicia too when we got home this morning and we got caught up on a lot of stuff as I haven't seen them since the "big day". They loved the ring which is cool ;). All in all a great day. Kind of funny.. and corny at the same time, but I concluded that I am awesome as I have run "every day this year". Hope everyone's Tuesday was splendid! Note: Treadmills are funny creatures. I was trying to figure out the innerworkings and physics behind them as I jogged today, but then realized that the funny rubber smell was not the belt or motor about to fry, but my brain! I will try not to think too hard tomorrow. ;)

Total Time: 30:00 Total Distance: 3.2 mi Average Pace: 9:22

7:15 AM - Snowy and wet outside today. Almost every school district was closed today. Emma and I went and got Indian food at our favorite Indian restaurant in Pittsfield last night and then passed out and slept 8 or 9 hours until the alarm went off this morning. I wanted to get a run in before having to go back to New York and work the stupid 11-8 shift today. I like our workout dates. I think they're fun and Emma told me that I am good motivation for her, as she might otherwise want to quit before completing the alotted time/distance goal(s) we set. The soreness in my quads is mainly gone which is nice. I think I am getting stronger. The run today was steady at 2% incline again. Phew! I was sweating up a storm! Now if only I could lose some weight! I will write more later. But I have to get going to make it to work in time because the roads will be horrible. I am expecting a 2h15m drive instead of the usual 1h30m :(. Hope everyone else has a great day. And to everyone in the Pacific NW, especially Snoqualmie - Let me know if you need to borrow my canoe or dingy! I heard that you all are getting 10-20 inches of rain! Crazy! Run on friends!!

Total Time: 30:00 Total Distance: 3.10 mi Average Pace: 9:41

3:20 PM - Went over to Spa Park after work and changed in my car. It was blustery cold and had been snowing all day. It finally stopped at about 3:00 so I decided it was definitely worth a go. There were a bunch of people walking their dogs but the highlight of today's run was during mile 3 when a momma deer jumped out in front of me and was staring at me, probably because my gloves were flourescent orange just like the hunters wear. I had a moment of ESPN where I was like "Woah. Easy does it. I'm just a jogger!" Then little Bambi came hopping across the road so cute! Momma and Bambi went off in to the woods and I kept jogging. I slipped a couple times during the run, but no falls. Ran pretty even paces despite the hills.

• Mile 1: 9:04
• Mile 2: 9:06
• Mile 3: 8:55
• Mile 4: 9:01
• Mile 5: 8:59
• .6: 5:14 (8:49)

Total Time: 50:23 Total Distance: 5.6 mi Average Pace: 9:00

GOOD NEWS!: I think that I have convinced Emmy to join the blog! Hopefully we will set her up with an account tomorrow as she's coming to New York!

Today was a much welcomed day off from jogging. Emmy met me at work during my lunch break and after work today around 3pm we went to a late lunch date at Panera. I love our little lunch/dinner dates! After that we went food shopping for later. Hopefully I can get her blogging tonight!

3:15 PM - Emmy went to my work today. She's such a trooper! After I got out we drove up to Spa Park and got changed in our cars. I laughed because imagine what some nonrunner would think of two cars next to each other each with a weirdo changing their clothes in the middle of a Siberian tundra winter! Crazy kids! We went jogging and had a blast. We both laughed at the icicles that formed in my beard. We were going to get a picture but forgot. A very fun run despite really icey roads. Took it slow because we are both a little sore and don't want to injure ourselves! I love running dates! =D

Total Time: 26:07 Total Distance: 2.32 mi Average Pace: 11:14

Tonight was the start of semester #3 of grad school. I can't believe that I'm that close to graduating :). Was nice to see a lot of the old faces from some of my other classes. I just hope I don't "burn out". Emmy went home today :(, but I'm going to her house this weekend so that's awesome :)! Hope everyone had a great Monday!

8:10 AM - This week in the northeast is going to be cold. And colder. And then even colder at night. Not cool. I decided after a successful class last night I would celebrate with my long run for the week this morning before my two classes tonight. I woke up around 7 and had a cup of coffee and a piece of toast and drove to the school. Temperature was between 15 and 20 I'd say with a slight 5-10 mph wind. Went out and back on Parkis and Crane, two roads I do a lot of my runs on primarily because I like the lack of traffic on them! Funny thing was when I got back to my car I actually got to laugh at how funny I looked. I was bundled in 3 layers on my legs, 3 on my torso, mittens and a hat. But the funny part was that I had icicles hanging from my glasses and all in my beard. I looked worse than Snoqualmie Ridge Runner's picture I think it was. I had neglected to keep my camera in my car last night because I didn't want the cold to zap the batteries, so the best I could do was take a photo with my camera, though I am technologically slow and don't have any text messages or anything so don't know if I can actually transfer the picture to my computer? All in all a really fun run. Splits were:

• Mile 1: 9:10
• Mile 2: 8:57
• Mile 3: 8:41
• Mile 4: 9:06 (big hill)
• Mile 5: 8:43
• Mile 6: 8:35
• .6: 4:55 (8:11)

Total Time: 58:09 Total Distance: 6.6 mi Average Pace: 8:48

11:00 PM - Found a fortune cookie on the oven when I got home just now from school. I opened it and read it. I will try to live up to this "fortune" in 2009: "Ambition has no obstacles." - Wise Chinese He/She

8:20 AM - Woke up and the basement was freezing! No wonder why my parents were so willing back in the day to let me essentially take it over as my bachelor pad! Brrr! After a cup of coffee I layered up with 2 pairs of socks (wouldn't fit in my shoes, so I had to cut it to 1), a pair of short spandex, pair of long spandex and a pair of running pants, and then hats, gloves, and an a-shirt, long sleeve cotton shirt, long sleeve thermal shirt, and long sleeve sport shirt, oh and a sweatshirt! After all that I got in the car which didn't want to start. Finally turned over and drove to the school to do a quick run. Air temperature at the start of the run was -5 degrees !!! (Yes, NEGATIVE!)[wind chill factor of between: minus 15 and minus 20!]. It was sunny though so that was nice. Couldn't do much more than 30 minutes, else my eyelids might have entirely frozen shut. As it was I had to take my hand out of the glove and melt the ice away from my eyelashes every half mile or so. It was a fun run though. But I did get some strange looks. I am attaching a picture of me after the run and 2 pictures of the sunrise the other day which was spectacular from my house. Splits were:

• Mile 1: 8:58
• Mile 2: 8:50
• Mile 3: 8:22
• .57: 4:28 (7:52 pace)

Total Time: 30:40 Total Distance: 3.57 mi Average Pace: 8:35

View looking Southeast from my Garage.

Another shot before I headed to work, ~7:20 AM

And now, for the moment I'm sure everyone's been waiting for... what I have titled "THE ICEMAN RUNNETH":

7:20 PM - Did about 20 minutes of core exercises, freeweights, pushups, and crunches. Felt good.

Doh! I hate when I have "blonde" moments (no offense to any FRB friends that are truly blonde haired). Got up at 6am an drove to work only to find out that I don't work until 12pm today. urgh. It's too cold to run outside with temps at -19 below so I guess I'm going to just do some free weights, crunches, and pushups. I won't be able to run tomorrow either, as I actually work 8am to 3pm tomorrow and then have to drive to Pittsfield for Emma and my friend's 23rd birthday party. Oh well. Will just have to remember that next week is a new week and I can try to get in a couple more runs when it is hopefully less cold out. I am also hoping to make use of Emma's treadmill while I'm there!

9:30 AM - Question of the Day: What do Howling Commandos do when weather and time constraints keep them from getting outside to do a run? .. They improvise!

KILLER COMMANDO WORKOUT #1 >> I stretched and changed into running attire with an added sweatshirt to hopefully lead to a better sweat. (Boy did it work!). I started doing stairs, the first time I've actually ever done them, going from the basement up to the middle floor, and back down again. The basement flight is 13 stairs and is very steep. Then my sister and mom who first thought I was crazy for wanting to run inside suggested that I add the second flight of stairs, a "Double Decker" approach. I did, but found it wasn't the same, and seemed disjointed in a way, especially as I had to dodge our not-so-little St. Bernard puppy Aggie who is now about 80 lbs and thought I was playing a game rather than working out. I kept up the crazy stair climbing for an agonizing 20 minutes until my legs burned fire. Then I did 7 minutes of jogging around the basement floor through the four rooms, followed by 5 minutes of jogging in place which made me feel like 1000 pounds! Finished with stretching, free weights, crunches, and pushups (sadly I missed 100) I will try for more pushups tonight.

Total Time: 32:00 Total Distance: *3.2 mi (xtraining equivalent)

4:45 PM - A snowy Sunday today :). Missy's birthday party was fun. I am in Pittsfield at Emma's house today, and I hopped on the treadmill. My legs have been sore and tired since my stair workout the other day. I guess it goes to show you don't know how out of shape you are until you try something you haven't done in a while. Just did 2.1 miles easy and a lot of stretching. It was nice.

Total Time: 22:00 Total Distance: 2.1 mi Average Pace: 10:28

12:20 PM - I usually don't use the elliptical machine, because in the past I have had bad experiences with it. However Emmy wanted to get in a run on the treadmill and I like working out with her so I hopped on the elliptical and did a run at 5/10 resistance. All I can say is wow. That was a humbling experience. I don't think I've ever been so pooped in my life after such a short jaunt! Did 35:00 minutes. Tonight we are going to dinner with the Momma Croshier (Emmy's mom), and one of her sisters, Liana. I can't wait! It should be fun. Then it will be family movie night back here! Hope everyone had a great holiday.

Total Time: 35:00 Total Distance: *3.5 mi

Something to think about as we look forward to a new leader in office and the turning of a new page in history:

A nation that continues year after year to spend more money on military defense than on programs of social uplift is approaching spiritual doom.

- Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

10:00 AM - Today I have class at night from 4pm to 10pm down in Albany, yuck! Emma had to be on a conference call with the lawyer's office so I went downstairs and hopped on the treadmill. About 10 minutes later she came down and hopped on the elliptical so we had another exercise date while we watched "House"! I'm going to miss exercise dates this week. I have to leave in a couple of hours to go to class and then home. Man it was hotter than Dante's inferno downstairs today! I don't think I've ever sweat so much on just a short treadmill run like that! Incline was @ 2%.

Total Time: 32:30 Total Distance: 3.25 mi Average Pace: 10:00

8:00 AM - A little exhausted after the long evening of classes and only about six hours of sleep last night. I wanted to see if our treadmill is "fixed" after my mom and sister said they worked on it while I was gone. I jumped on and did a slow jog and everything seems to be in order. I don't think any fast runner could use it as the belt might slip a bit, but for my humble 5-6mph jogging it works! Read while I ran. Almost done with Cormac O'Brien's The Forgotten History of America. Only about 1 chapter left! It is fun to run on the treadmill "jamming out" to James Taylor and Jim Croce. Man I am such a rebel! :-P

Total Time: 25:07 Total Distance: 2.27 mi Average Pace: 11:04

8:30 AM - Very nasty cold and windy outside. Also, our Pyrenees, "Libby" isn't doing well. She tore a ligament in her back right leg a year or two ago, but fell on the ice and reinjured it. She's almost 8 I think now, which is an average old age for a dog her size. I am just hoping she doesn't get put down. It will really suck to lose both of our dogs in less than a year. Wanting to stay close to home in case my mom needed help with Libby, I hit the dreadmill. Just really slow and read a book while I ran, aptly named The Totally Useless History of the World  by Ian Crofton. Surprisingly it was a very interesting book. You think that we are screwed up now, and then you read about what people did a thousand years ago or even a couple hundred and you realize we actually are a lot more civil! Did a lot of stretching. Finally a day off tomorrow from jogging. Just have work. Going to go work on homework for the majority of the day now. I hope everyone else has a good day.

Total Time: 1:10:00 Total Distance: 7.0 mi Average Pace: 10:00

Running late for work. Snooze buttons should NOT exist! (haha!) Funny thing, though a bit weird because I live in the East.. but one of my dreams last night was of me running with Kory and Bill Mandler on one of their "easy" runs. I almost died in the dream, but they taught me a lot about running and life. Only reason I saw it's "weird" is because I've never met them in real life, though it feels like I've known you all forever! After 5 days in a row, I think today is a day off! Happy Friday! 

PM - Free weights, crunches, pushups. 1.5 miles in 16:00 and lots of stretching afterwards. Legs feel pretty good after yesterday's run. The only thing is a little tenderness in the left knee. Going to ice it later and get a good night's sleep!

9:00 AM - Very cold today. Emmy went running on the treadmill and I went to the school and went for a jog. Cut it short because my left knee is sore; It has hurt the last couple days since the treadmill run. I think I have learned that Treadmills and Benn do NOT get along. Grr. Probably going to do more biking this week than jogging.

Total Time: 18:06 Total Distance: 2.01 Average Pace: 9:00

Definitely feel like crap right now. Yeah my knee still hurts, but more importantly I went with my Mom to the vet today with our dog Libby. She's been having problems putting any weight on her back leg, just like Geri and her front leg this summer... well the xray confirmed it. She has bone cancer, a tumor the size of a baseball that has grown on her knee joint and actually fractured the bone. Great. I lose another dog :(. She will probably be put down sometimes this week or next. I really hate it. Stressed with school and work, and now this. Oh and even better.. we're getting about a foot to 16" of snow tonight which will make tomorrow horrible as I work 8-2, have to drive down to Albany (usually a 45 min drive) for a meeting 3pm-4:30, and then back up to Saratoga Springs for work 6pm to 9pm. *sigh. I need some caffeine!

Run down. Feeling blah. Something that a good run would fix. Haha. But knee still hurts like a mother. I don't know what's up but Emmy said I should make a dr.'s appointment. I loathe doctors :(.

5:00 PM - Went for a ride before dinner to test out the knee. It didn't hurt as much at work today. I told myself that I would stop as soon as the pain got noticeably worse. The pain didn't get worse though. Just stayed constant. Felt good to be on the bike.. Reminisced about the summer rides as I read from Miracle in the Andes by Nando Parrado. Read 82 pages before I called it quits and went and got dinner. Maybe I am truly a runner that just does better at biking than running. It's like I have the heart of a runner, the mind of a runner, and the legs of a biker? I don't know.

Total Time: 45:19 Total Distance: 15 miles

4:00 PM - Biking after work today. Knee didn't hurt that much both at work and on the bike. Definitely feeling better than earlier in the week. Read another 80 pages of Miracle in the Andes. About 1/2 or 2/3 of the way through it. Talk about an amazing test of endurance that tested every human faculty imagineable. It's crazy what these men and women went through at 12,000 foot elevation after crashing in an airplane. They waited 72 days before finally being rescued!

Total Time: 45:00 Total Distance: 15 mi