Do Your Civic Duty, and Earn Donuts

I love voting. Not only because in this country we are blessed with a chance that is still unmatched in many countries around the world to decide who will lead our local, state, and national governments, but because my local polling place has a ridiculous bounty of snacks.


Today, they had coffee, cookies, donuts and orange juice. In past elections I've been there when they had soup and sandwiches, too. I would vote anyway, but it's a nice little extra reward for getting out there and voting.

And if anyone out there is thinking "election fraud" (Boardwalk Empire, anyone?), let me assure that these delicious election day treats are available to all voters, regardless of for whom they cast their ballots.

Race Day Traditions and Superstitions

There's no such thing as lucky hats. If the Eagles or the Orioles win every time I wear the same hat to a game, it's just a coincidence. (And that never happens, anyway.) If I always felt smarter, more confident, and luckier on final exam day in college when I was wearing a certain hat, and then aced the test, again, just coincidence.

Of course, that doesn't mean I'm going to stop believing in the power of my favorite talisman.

(I won this at the York Fair in 1992. It usually brings me luck,
but does not a darn thing for the team.)

I'm not extremely superstitious when it comes to running, though I have a few habits that probably are a little more than traditions:

1. Race day attire -- I never wear the race shirt on race day. Not because it's bad luck, but because that would prevent me from wearing my lucky red singlet. It's become my favorite of all the running shirts I own because its the most comfortable and least chafing, and along the way that seemed to cross the line into "lucky". Hence, I've worn it every long run since August while I've been training for this marathon and I wore it both times I ran the Philly Half. Seems like it would be tempting the fates to not wear it this time, no? I wore a different shirt for Broad Street, since it was 80 degrees I wanted to wear a lighter color and I wore a white shirt (and green shorts) for Shamrock so as to not be the guy running the St. Patrick's Day marathon in a red shirt. I don't have lucky running shorts -- that's just silly. If I wear the same gray and blue Brooks shorts on every long run, it's just because they're the newest and most comfortable.

2. Timepieces -- Every time I wear my Garmin in a long race, I end up wanting to throw it in a river, lake, or ocean. While that sample size is somewhat small, I definitely feel like my watch has some positive mojo in it that the Garmin lacks. I opted for my watch over Garmin during the last Philly Half, and I attribute the better-than-expected PR I set there to choosing the watch over the GPS. Since the lack of satellite reception in downtown Philadelphia would cause Garmin to infuriate me, anyway, wearing the watch is an easy choice. Plus, there's no denying that it's cool.



3. Expowear -- I usually spend more time thinking about what to wear to the expo than what to wear on race day, and I don't think I'm the only one that does this. It's always interesting to see the different race shirts runners wear to the expo. I'm not sure if it's a status symbol contest or if most people are just trying to show that they're not n00bs, but a friend summed up perfectly how I think of it, "You want to show that this isn't your first rodeo."

It's an easy choice to wear my Shamrock Marathon shirt to the Philly Expo, and as an added bonus it matches my lucky hat perfectly. I would probably be crossing the line between projecting myself as a savvy veteran and being a tool if I wear my Shamrock finisher's hat, too. (Right?)

4. Carb-loading -- I know carb-loading is (or should be) a little more complicated than "eat a bunch of pasta the night before the race", but I still prefer pasta the night before. Also, one pre-race beer with dinner to take the edge off a little bit and help me sleep well. Not five, not three, one. That's very important. After the race, par-tay.

5. D-tags -- Not many races have d-tags (disposable timing chip tags that attach to shoes) anymore, as b-tags (disposable timing chip tags that attach to the back of race bibs) have become more prevalent, but I always used to leave the d-tag on my running shoes until I had to take it off for the next race. My last pair of Supernova Glides, which never got recycled as casual-wear sneakers because they're ugly, and instead survive as my biking/lifting shoes, still have the d-tag from the 2010 Jingle Bell Run.



Well, that's about it for me...except for making a burnt offering of Sports Beans to the marathon gods in the hotel lobby on race morning, of course. "Eff you, Jobu. I do it myself."

The Guilty Pleasure Song

I'm pretty open-minded in my musical tastes, I think. But when I'm running, the range of music I like narrows considerably. Though there a few outliers, like same Dave Matthews and Counting Crows, which are a good change of pace when I'm on a long run, it's mostly short, fast pop-punk songs to try to keep my energy up.

For example, though I started my last 20-mile run out with AFI' rather grim album, "Sing the Sorrow", which was perfect because I was in a terrible mood at the start, other artists that appeared on my playlist are less serious stuff like Blink-182, Rancid, the Offspring, All Time Low, and New Found Glory. There's various speeds and moods within that set, but even when the subject matter is dark (like most of the Offspring's catalog) the tone is fast and what I would consider fun.

There's one thing on my Shuffle that just doesn't fit. I'm even a little embarrassed by it. However, when it started playing just as I began mile 19, it gave me a huge lift.

Without further ado: "Good Girls Go Bad" by Cobra Starship


I first heard this song in Summer 2010 while I walking outside the Planet Hollywood shops in Vegas, where it seemed appropria)te, and it's become one of my favorite running songs. Its over-the-top, tongue-in-cheek (I guess?) arrogance cracks me up, and it always provides a much-needed laugh.

Losing the Arms Race

Remember the blog post where I mentioned that I was going to try to start lifting again after getting completely out of the habit earlier this year after being pretty consistent with it ever since 1999?

Or the one where I berated myself for not starting lifting again and resolving to do better?

Oh, good. I don't either.

And I haven't. Got back in the swing of lifting, that is. I used the weights for the first time since July.

I've had enough trouble motivating myself to run over the past few months, let alone lift, but now the pressure is on. I have a beach trip coming up at the end of the year, and I admit I am motivated mostly by vanity. I know I won't get back all or even most of the strength I had before (which, I admit, wasn't that much!) and I'm very ectomorphic without much muscle mass even at my "peak" of lifting regularly (2006-2009), but I think I can tone back up a little by the end of December.

The goal is 3x a week, probably Sunday, Wednesday, and Friday, until after the marathon and then every other day after that.

Saturday Long Run: So You're Telling Me There's a Chance...

If you read this blog regularly, you know I'm having a crisis of confidence regarding the upcoming Philadelphia Marathon because I haven't done as good a job getting my base miles in as I should have.

If you don't read this blog regularly, I'm having a crisis of confidence regarding the upcoming Philadelphia Marathon because I haven't done as good a job getting my base miles in as I should have.

I'd been debating what do with my long run today. Taper? Or try to get one more 20-miler in? I asked for and got lots of advice here, on dailymile, and on the Runner's World Philadelphia Marathon forum, and opinions ranged from "do it -- there's plenty of time to rest" to "No, at this point you're not going to gain any fitness and you run the risk of injury by not being rested on race day." Thanks again to everyone who gave me advice.

I decided to try for 20 miles, but set up my route as an 8-mile out and back so that I could easily stop at 16 if I didn't feel like going on. I wanted 20, but I know at this late stage it wasn't worth killing myself for. The second I stepped on the trail, though, I had the feeling that this could be a great run. I felt light, I felt fast, I felt strong, I felt like a Kenyan, I felt like a marathoner again...I felt so distracted by how great I felt that I guess I forgot to hit "start" on my Garmin for (I'm guessing) about 3/4 of a mile. That's ok, I know where the 8-mile mark is, it just meant my time would be an estimate.

I felt great all the way up, and if I'd had my four-bottle hydration belt, I would have gone all the way to York and back. Of course, if I'd had my four-bottle hydration belt it would have annoyed the daylights out of me. I started to tire around mile 13, but I had been eating sports beans every two or three miles throughout the run and I think that really helped.

I got back to Hanover Junction with my GPS reading 15.83, which is weird since I'm certain I ran more than .2 miles before starting it. I'm a bad distance estimator but not THAT bad, and I know that at least two songs had played before I noticed it wasn't running. I refilled my bottles, stretched my calves and quads out, and headed south. My new plan was to run a mile down and a mile back, so I could stop at 18 if I needed to. I was tired, but still felt good, and so I kept on going for two miles, and circled back and ran a little past Hanover Junction till my Garmin actually read "20.00."

(I ran 20 and lived to tell the tale and look like a dork.)

It was definitely my best long training run ever. I ran the whole 20 miles without walk breaks, though I did make three quick stops: a restroom break at about mile 10, the refilling break at 16, and a quick stop to photograph some cute goats at about mile 18.5. It took me 3:29:39, two minutes faster than last time, which means I probably was going faster last time and burned myself out, forcing me to walk.

I had no leg cramps during the run and my post-run stretching, which was very surprising and very welcome. I don't think I could have run 26.2 today without some walking breaks, but I feel like this puts me in line to at least equal my performance at Shamrock. Given the bad base miles situation I've gotten myself in, I'll gladly take that at this point.

(This friendly goat came over to say "hi", or probably "Hey old man, let me out of my cage.")

Overall, I couldn't have asked for a more beautiful morning for this run, and I couldn't have hoped to feel any better during it. I may regret this 20-miler on 11/20, but right now I feel my confidence needed the boost more than my legs needed the third week of tapering.

(While I was stretching at Hanover Junction after the run,
the sky was the deepest blue I've ever seen.
My crappy cell phone camera doesn't do justice how beautiful it was.)

One Last Long Run? Or Not?

After weeks of not being able to get enough midweek runs in, I did ok this week:


Monday: 3 miles in 29:29 -- It was dark, the sidewalks were clogged with trick-or-treaters, and my headlamp battery was dying. Other than that, it was a good run.


Tuesday: 8 miles in 1:18 -- Good hilly run on Tuesday night through Manchester and Mt. Wolf.

Thursday: 5.36 miles in 55:32 -- This one was really, really tough. I think I undid myself by hitting the steep hills really early in my run today. I was also running at lunch and it was 57 degrees, which is a pleasant running temperature, but is also much warmer than the early-morning or late-evening temperatures I've been running in over the past few weeks, when it's usually been in the 30s or low 40s.

I'm debating what to do with the long run this Saturday. My 20-miler was two weeks ago, and I'm debating trying for another. Officially, I'm supposed to only run 12, but why listen to Higdon now when I've ignored his wisdom for two months? (Next week's long run, in the last weekend before the marathon, is 8 miles)

Another 20 miler would be a good confidence boost, and I don't really have the expectation of a great marathon -- just finishing will suffice -- which I expect/hope will mean running 20ish miles and mixing in some walk breaks to get through the last six.

On the other hand, I don't think the length of my last real long run, whether it's 15-16 or 20, will make or break my marathon. I broke it in October when I lost my willpower at the worst possible time.

Slim & Shady

I'm far from a fitness expert, and in no way a professional. That much is obvious to anyone reading this blog. I am happy to share my opinions on the products I use and the events I participate, and to be honest I would absolutely love for companies to send me products to test and review. So I was intrigued a few days ago when I received this e-mail in my blog's mailbox:

Hello,


I hope you're having a nice week! I am reaching out to you because I recently came across your page:http://earnyourdonuts.blogspot.com/2011_05_01_archive.html


I have a few questions for you; if you could get back to me at your convenience, that would be great. I look forward to hearing from you!

Thanks,

Now, I was intrigued, but I should have suspected that this was spam when the address listed was my blog archive from May and not a real post, but I followed up and received this response:

Hi Brian,

Thanks for getting back to me :)

I am reaching out to you because I saw you had some awesome fitness and health related posts on your blog. Are you familiar with the Beachbody brand? If not, we are the makers of the popular p90x, along with many other fitness programs. I was wondering if you would be interested in adding a short post with a couple of our links on your blog. The Beachbody brand is so relevant to the content on your page and I think your site viewers would find our products very beneficial. If this is something you like to discuss further please let me know. I look forward to hearing from you!

Thanks,

"Awesome fitness and health related posts"? Were they really reading my blog? Still, here's where it seems like they're asking me to endorse a product. Again, I'm no expert, but what credibility I have comes from me giving my honest opinions. I'm not comfortable endorsing something I haven't tried myself. I asked if I could have a copy of one of their programs to try:

Hi (Name withheld)
Thanks for the quick response. I've heard of p90x, although it would be a stretch to say I'm familiar with it. I would be happy to put up a post with some links, under a couple conditions:

1. I am not comfortable endorsing something I have not tried myself. Would you be able to send me any programs to try?

a. If so, I will put up a post with a link to the Beachbody website and a link the program or programs I'm trying.
b. I'll keep my readers posted with some updates along the way and then a review of the program after I've used it through the proscribed length of the program.



2. If condition #1 is ok w/Beachbody, I want to be very upfront with my readers that I was asked to share information with them and provided w/things to try.


3. If condition #1 is ok, I would like to maintain my flexibility regarding the context/tone of reviews -- I'm going for a mix of seriousness and humor on my blog. I love writing product reviews, but in them I try to balance a solid review with a little bit of humor. For example, I made fun of all the little brand names & labels (like the "Geofit" label inside them) on my Adidas running shoes that imply their advanced technology. That said, I reviewed my first impression of their performance and as they reach the end of their lifecycle in a month or two I'll write a longer review of my experiences with them. In context, I'm not a professional trainer or coach, I'm just a regular guy -- I'd like review your products in the context of "this is what I liked about them/this is what I didn't like" and "this is why there were a good fit for me/why they might not have been the best fit".


Your e-mail is catching me at the right time -- I was pretty consistent, although not very scientific, with a weightlifting program for many years, but have really gotten out of the habit over the past year as I've gotten busier at my job and with training for longer races. I want to catch the fitness (and not just the running) bug again during 2010, so I hope we can work together on this.


This is the first year of my blog, but I have been getting about 1700 readers a month, and I hope to continue to grow my readership as well.

Thanks again,

Brian

No products for me:

Hi Brian,

Thanks for getting back to me :) Unfortunately at this time we are not able to offer products for review or compensation for linking to us. If you have any other ideas - I am open to suggestions! Let me know how you would like to proceed :)


Thanks,

So let's review. Beachbody wants me to link to, in effect advertising or endorsing, a fitness product that I've never used? No way. And if that's the kind of referrals they're looking for, that leads me question their credibility.

I'm not just trying get free stuff here, and this isn't buying ad space that they're talking about. I don't think a blogger having ads or selling ad space necessarily means that they personally endorse those products. They reached out to me to add a post about their product. That's a little different from my point-of-view. I enjoy writing reviews of the products I purchase and use. I still owe a review of the new hydration belt that infuriated me so much during my 20-mile run. I'd be thrilled to be sent products to review. But how am I supposed to post about something I've never tried? Really, they don't have a spare set of DVDs lying around?

I debated posting this, and I debated naming the company, since I'm in effect giving them exactly what they wanted. I'd have been glad to try one of their programs and share my thoughts on it, but instead I'm putting up a post and telling my readers that I think the company is a little bit shady.