injured training involves wine

Well, as we all know by now, I have the body of a 73 yr old woman. Sad. Oh well. Orthodics are on their way, then it's another week of pain and hopefully no more knee, foot, or ankle pain. On a related note, power walking is actually really boring unless you have great music or friends and wine. Last night I had the latter (no, I still haven't gotten my shower and rub down, but there was a candy trail...oo, piece of candy!). It was a really pleasant night to be out walking it made me feel not quite as bad about not being able to run. Also, after falling on my bike, my body is still broken (shoulder, kneck, back, wrist, hip), so I've been taking it extremely slow. Oh well, am hoping next week that I'll be back on ye ol circuit.

And my Gram's home from the hospital, she came out ok but they're thinking she'll need chemo. Another thing about NJ (even if they're not masters) with the issues, diseases, and plague hitting society, it's important to remember to keep fighting. Life's hard and it'll kick you when you're down. Just remember to grab the foot, pull yourself up, and punch it in the nuts and face on your way back up. Goodluck Gma!

Snow day cabbage day

Pierogies! Delish, if you've never had these awesome lil polish dumplings filled with sauerkraut (the're just like me!), then you're missing out on life! Simply an amazing foodage! On a side note, I put some in my smoothie this morning and it actually has take on this really tart aftertaste. Cabbage! Sauerkraut! Tummy rumbling!
The Saints won! Excitement for New Orleans (double excitement cause they were having a parade no matter what)! Real winners know you plan a party win, loose, or draw. You just party happier if you win and less people end up in trashcans. Turns out that the same guy who intercepted Manning for TD also intercepted Favre two weeks ago for some love. Betty White's appearance in the Snicker's commercial was the best 2.whatever million spent in commercial time. In my mind anyway, and that's all that matters, really!
It's snowing again in Denver! That means running is more treacherous! Deadly even. Especially if you're being hunted my a NJM and you're not past level 1 yet of training. Spooky! Good thing I'm at level 5. Yes, that means my pace time recently dropped from 11min/mi to 10min/mi. Booyah! Welcome to level 5 . . . and your doom! Wait, what? I don't die till the end of this movie, I'm pretty sure. Plot twist! Anyway, don't know if I'm going to go do some circuit training or get a quick run in if it's not too icy after work. Seems like a good idea if I stay awake anyhow.
By now you're asking yourself, "There are levels to become a NJM? I though there were just a few steps?" Well, young one, you are wrong! There are both. It is a journey of mind and body and spirit. And I'm too tired to list all the levels, but since you already know the 5th, here's another bone (warning, one of these levels involves a montage, so if you don't think you can handle it, you probably can't. Quitter):
Level 1 NJM training: Learn your limits. Now pass them! You can only run 1 mile? Now run 2, barefoot, uphill while holding a rabid mongoose! Life isn't about how far you think you can go, it's about pushing yourself farther.

Motivational speeches suck

Sometimes people need to learn there limits. I have never been a "candle burner", I actually hate the metaphor. Basically, normal people burn their candle, and over-achievers or active people burn it at both ends. Screw that noise, I toss the damn thing in the fire and hope something pretty happens.

Mondays are notoriously rough days for me. I'm really good Saturdays, either work out early or skip it and early to bed. I wake up early Sunday and feel like superwoman (still working on getting some tear away clothing to hide my 80s workout gear). Work for 8, out by 2pm, errands, maybe a nap and then boom, stupidity sets in. I'm generally tired and decide to indulge in some wine and video games, or as was the case this Sunday, a late night workout. Nothing gets the blood flowing better and coinkydink, I don't sleep well after them. So after gymning and showering and a late night snack, I watched tv till 1:30a and got up at 5a for work. It wasn't a yawning tired, rather a body crunching, total exhaustion that made me glare at the upcoming 8hrs, 2mi bike into the gale force winds (anyone else thinking we're in for a big storm?), and the sun hiding behind clouds about 45min before I got off work. Torture. Also proof that I have no more good karma left.

My Sage Burner registration is taped to my kitchen cupboard right now. It's motivating for me, 1) because it's taped up with black tape which is constantly letting go so I have to re-tape it and go, "oh, race time in 5 months". 2) It's a non-refundable race, dummy. Nothing says motivation like running for a cause when you can't get your $$ back. On the upside I traded in my old shoes for new ones and am now sporting some fancy, superhero looking kicks (really, all I need is tear-away clothing to be Wonder Woman). Breaking them in is no fun as my other ones conformed to my feet perfectly . . . except the plastic part that had worn through and was poking my foot, that didn't fit.

On the upside, training is going well. Need to do laundry cause my gymn clothes are a *bit* smelly. Did some hill running on the treadmill and managed not to die or fart while lifting legs, squats especially. Asparagus!! Not sure about running tonight as am already tired.

On smellier news, Brent Faaaaav-re is done for the season due to a few missteps that his old mind thought he could do. A nice rendition of "Prima donna" from "Phantom of the Opera" is due him. Especially that "first lady at the ball line". Oh retire and go into coaching, your senile brain can't handle any more hits and our minds are rotting from watching your retirement tears.

I wonder if there'll still be fresh fruits n veggies for delish smoothies and yogurt bfasts after the zombie apocalypse.

so i've already used all my good karma

Seriously, after everything last year and early this year, I'd have thought I had more good Karma out there waiting for me. But no! My 1st day off in 1.5 weeks and it's cold, cloudy, and going to snow! Now how will we run Matthew Winter's park? I guess it's off to the gymn time and time for me to replace my training shoes (not the actual race ones, still have to break those lovely buggers in. Can't wait!) but they're peeling on the inside. I'm pretty sure I pigeon toe, which I blame on breaking my ankle at a young age and my opposite foot at a older, yet still unwise, age and having both set funny due to the compound complexity of the breakages. Seriously, how do people make it to 25 without ever having broken a bone? I've broke....4 and 2 bruised ribs. On the upside, I've had some awesome cast colors and skin sloughing - lizards love me. Just a casualty of being a sporty person. I wonder if Sporty Spice has these problems?
Also, a word to the wise and not so wise. Don't mix fruit smoothies, coffee, oatmeal, and running together. There's only so much you can blame on your pet. GRACIE!
Speaking of training for running, while shoes are important, it's also important to focus on those hard to reach areas that improve NJM-ness. Such as vid-jeo (that's how's it's pronounced in my house biatches!) game playing. Zombie games are great for life skills and survival expertise, also they teach you what weapons work/don't work should there be a zombie apocalypse (2012?). Other games require more strategy such as the old school Nintendo and DOS games Hugo's House of Horrors anyone??
That's all for now, off to enjoy my cup o joe and make day off plans

Cheese, answers, and more questions

I may be lactose intolerant, but there's one thing I'm not willing to give up. Cheese. I love it so much I'm making up a song, only on verse 1, but it's as evolving as my life story ;-)
"Cheese, it makes you want to poop. Cheese, it makes you have to poop; cheese it make it so u can't poop. Cheese, don't eat it before a date cause it gives you gas. Cheese."
And yes, C, if you decimate a toilet, you should run out yelling, "Fruit smoothie!!!" . . . would have liked a warning the other day. You are now -10 Jedi points, +2 ninja points for the fright attack. ;-)
Just signed up for the Sage Burner. I would like to thank my Dad and Step-mom for sponsoring the event!! Looks like it'll be an awesome asskicking mountain run!
Oh, flax and oats = gas, my tum was rumbling something awesome. Why is it always the healthiest food that makes you stinky? Like vegetarian farts? Why does running give you gas? What really are scardy farts?

Back in the hamster wheel

Today I'm officially going to kick it back into gear...I hope. After a long work week that doesn't end till Weds, I'm feeling a little tired. To that extent, another cup o coffee! Nothing fancy today. Just so you all get an idea of how tired I am, I just walked to and from the general area of the coffee pot (with my cup) and didn't get any coffee. So the plan is after work, run to the gymn, do something, or maybe just a hammie stretch, and run home. Worst case scenario leaves me walking the 2.5mi home since the bus is $1+change.
And why does public transportation have to be so expensive? Especially when there isn't a direct route to the airport without paying $15 and waiting on a corner of Colfax for 40min? Not that in that amount of time you couldn't make up your $15, but who wants to run the risk of being stabbed witha disco heal by a ladie who swears that corner belongs to her?
My hands are a wreck from work so much this week. Nothing says I work at a coffee shop like splitting nails and knuckles and dry itchy skin. On the upside, I'm rocking the sudoku (suduko?) skills and getting through my xmas books from my dad. I just finished La Catedral del Mar, I'd highly recommend it in SPA or ENG! Fab book and I hope to see more of Ildefonso Falcones. Am just starting La Suma de los Dias by Isabel Allende who is one of my fav authors (that's right, I pick favorites and have a lot of them!)!
Well, off to see if I can successfully fill up my coffee cup. Happy running!

Differences of opinion

My brother is of the belief that the only thing tougher (by definition, tougher = badass...look, you learned something today!) than a NJM is an NJM spliced with a Pirate Pterodactyl. I disagree as a NJM looses all stealthing abilities once either of those elements are introduced, because as my bro added, "Pterodactyls are the real assholes, always swearing." Oh science, when will you bring one to life so we can have a Pirate Pterodactyl swear-off (in some circles considered an ancient mating ritual)? The world is so worse off without a PP.
Taking time off to heal blows. I mean, I've ran probably 10-12 miles since xmas due to a foot injury and today I could hardly run. It was exhausting. Really demotivating. The only thing keeping me going was the knowledge that if I didn't go for a run and retrieve my bike from work, I would have to get up at 4:30am to walk to work instead of sleeping in and biking.
Speaking of Badgers, my Step Mom bought me an awesome fleece that not only appeals to my inner girlie nature but also my deep seeded love for all things from Cheeseland. Let me explain. It has a nice white background with some sort of enormous foliage and flowers randomly tossed across it, which are - dadadada!!!- red! Fuck em Bucky!
I am trying something new. I have recently discovered that I am entering into a long term relationship with Steel cut oatmeal (love the taste, texture, and way it pops in the mouth!!), which, had originally started as an affair from my normal quick oats, now so blaze and yesterday's newspaper used to cover my worm bin. But I digest! Anyhow, am trying adding flax seeds to stuff such as oatmeal and granola. It's supposed to be filled with vitamins, some sort of fats, and something that's good for cardiovascular health. None of which can be bad for running as the least it can do is motivate me to not fart and be stand still! I am hoping this motivates me to run after work tomorrow as it is supposed to be in the 50s.
Will keep you posted on the affects of flax mas oatmeal and running stats.
xoxo

Part 1 of training montage

Getting ready to sign up for the Sage Burner. Should be an awesome race! About 16.2 miles of sage and sand and running. Got to kick the training into high gear!
So far, longest run to date: 9.2mi-mostly flat ground. Got lost and my 6.2mi run to and from downtown ended in a 9.2mi run to and from the country. On Wisconsin! Hardest run to date: 7.4mi from the ski area up Loveland pass and back down base elevation is around 10,000' and up to 12,000'. Needless to say there was some run-walk-run motions happening at the top due to lack of oxygen...but we didn't stop! That's what seperates the NJM from simple Ninjas or Jedis. When the going gets tough, we shove other people out of the way and put our oxygen masks on first!
And it's true, you do get to skip a few training steps in becoming a NJM if you are a Badger. Mostly because they bleed red and white and turning your blood to other colors is an important NJM skill. Mostly because confuses the enemy, often they're not sure if they hit you or you are expelling some sort of toxic substance onto them. Jump Around!

stretching the hammies

It's very important while training not to forget to stretch the hammies. And I don't care how you do it. Moreover, it's not really important if you're in short-shorts or a onesie. Proper form (on a side note, generally the proper place is considered any workspace you or a close friend occupy) is to lean across the counter like you're going to tell them a secret, straighten your back and really lean into your heals, then waggle slowly from side to side. This enable a great combo relaxation: lower back, hammies, and legs stretch slowly and you get to chat with a friend. Now, as you're becoming a Ninja-Jedi Master (NJM) don't forget, you're representing a superior "race" or form of being, so it's important never to forget who you are becoming. I frequently leave a bathroom shouting, "ASPARAGUS!!" to let people know I'm eating healthy food-whether or not I had asparagus for dinner. If you forget you're in training and lash out at a fellow earthling just because you can't chug, just remember young one, somewhere my Great Grandma is sitting in the sky getting ready to slap you for not living up to the NJM code.