Waterlogged

The weather in Columbus lately has been beautiful. I absolutely adore the spring colors, the flowers, the blossoming trees. People always talk about how pretty autumn is, and I agree, but I think spring doesn't get enough credit. Perhaps it is because so many people are suffering from allergies that they have trouble appreciating the beauty surrounding them. I am sorry for those of you who are sufferering, but as I don't have any allergies, I am totally and completely loving spring. The sun, the warmth, the delicious smells and gorgeous sights of all the blooming life.

Of course, all this life needs to be watered. Here comes the rain. On Friday, there was a nice little April shower. Clouds moved in that morning, and when I got home after school, I was pretty sure that if I didn't lace up my running shoes and hit the pavement soon, I might be tempted to stay inside once the drops started falling. About five minutes into the run, I was being misted. It was actually kind of pleasant, but ten minutes later, I was in the middle of a torrential downpour. I could barely see and was 100% soaked through. As I headed home, I was a complete mess. I had one eye closed as water had gotten in and shifted my contact, and I looked like I had just jumped in a lake. Just as I rounded the corner of my street, the rain turned back to mist, naturally, but I was done for. Two and a half miles, and I probably had two and a half cups of water to squeeze out of my clothes and shoes. Despite all that, it really wasn't so bad except I think the water got into the Nike+ sensor in my shoe. It hasn't worked since, so I'm headed out today to get a new one. Note to self: Remove sensor before running in the rain.

Not all things are made equal

Two years ago, when I was living in New York, the city became the first "in the country to implement a law forcing chain restaurants to post the calorie count of each food in the same size and font as the price"*. Based on that law, the new health care legislation includes a requirement for chains across the country to post calorie information on their menus and drive-through signs**. I completely support this particular aspect of the law. Sure, I can look up nutrition information online, as I did to get the numbers below. Nearly all restaurants post their food facts on their websites, but I like being able to see in the moment I'm about to order what it is I'm getting. One might think that a burger at one restaurant would be similar, nutritionally, to one at another restaurant. I had assumed that the new blended coffee beverages at McDonald's would be similar to Starbucks' Frappuccinos. I couldn't be more wrong. Out of curiosity, I did some comparing online and discovered the shocking differences between blended coffee beverages all over the place. Here are just a few examples:

Bruegger's Mocha Brueggaccino (16 oz.)

640 calories

29 g of fat

82 g of sugar

0% calcium (is there no milk in there?)

McDonald's Frappe Mocha (16 oz.)

560 calories (480 w/o whipped cream)

24 g of fat (18 w/o whipped cream)

70 g of sugar

25% calcium

Starbucks Mocha Frappuccino (16 oz.)

380 calories (260 w/o whipped cream)

15 g of fat (3.5 w/o whipped cream)

47 g of sugar

20% calcium

I could have TWO Starbucks drinks (w/o whipped cream) for fewer calories than either of the other two versions. Maybe some people prefer making uninformed decisions about what they put in their body. Ignorance is bliss and all that. Personally, I'm very much looking forward to calorie counts being posted as soon as possible.

*http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/25464987

**http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/24/business/24menu.html

Oh, the pain

In case any of you in my small group of regular readers out there were under the impression that this marathon training thing is easy, let me clear that right up. It is REALLY challenging. Sure, I've been telling you that the runs are going pretty well. Sure, I've been good about sticking to the training schedule. And sure, I ran 13 miles last Saturday and managed to beat my goal time of 2 hours and 10 minutes. But it is NOT easy.

Last week, the training program really upped my miles. I ran six on Monday, three on Tuesday, six on Wednesday, two on Friday, and thirteen on Saturday, for a total of 30 miles in one week. That's what I used to average in a month. On Wednesday, I felt tired and sluggish. My pace was really slow, and I did not want to keep running. I think there are a lot of factors to how any given run feels and how well I perform. What did I have to eat in the last 24 hours? How much sleep did I get? What's the weather like? How well did I stretch? All these factors coalesce, and I might feel great or miserable. On Saturday, I could tell a huge difference in my energy level from the week before because I had eaten well. However, my quads were killing me for the last four miles because I need to strengthen and stretch them more.

On days, or even on certain miles of a run, when I feel like quitting, I rely on my mind more than my body to get me through. I imagine having Bob or Jillian (from The Biggest Loser) at my side pushing me to keep going the way they push the contestants on their show. I imagine that I'm actually in a race and that any cars or people I see along the way are there to cheer me on. I think about how far I've come, how I can hardly believe this is me running this far, how amazing my feet, ankles, calves, knees, and thighs are for carrying me, for moving me forward. And, like I mentioned last week, I rely on the strength of God and think about how much He has blessed me. If I can do this, I think anyone can. Like so much in life, it really comes down to putting your mind to it.

P.S. I'm still sore from Saturday, and I'm walking around like I just got off a horse. Hopefully a good stretch, followed by today's five miles, and another good long stretch will help ease the pain.

Fasting = Slow but Good

A couple weeks ago I decided that I wanted to fast from sundown Maundy Thursday to sundown Good Friday. I haven't fasted in a long time, but I've really felt like God has put it on my heart to try again. Our church (Vista Community) has been going through a series on spiritual disciplines, and even though fasting isn't one that they have focused on, it's one that I don't spend any time doing, so I wanted to revisit it. I also thought that it would be a good way to help me reflect and meditate on Jesus' sacrifice on the day we remember his death.

As Holy Week began, I realized that I wasn't going to have time for a long run again this Saturday. I had another choir practice and a Starbucks shift to work, but I was completely free on Friday. Hmmm... a 12 mile run on an empty stomach. I contemplated canceling or moving my planned fast, but then I decided that God put it on my heart for a reason and that He could provide me the strength I needed, much like He did for Daniel. I also decided that though I would fast from food, I would still drink water and Gatorade.

Friday morning, instead of breakfast, I read from 1 Samuel and Psalms. Then I filled up my water bottles with Gatorade and got in my car to head over to the Olentangy Trail. A popular greenway for cyclists, runners, dog-walkers, etc, it offers a 13.75 mile route along the Olentangy River from Worthington Hills (on the north side of Columbus) all the way to downtown, with trailheads at several major city parks. I'd been wanting to check it out for some time but kept waiting for a long enough run to make the drive worth it. I wish I hadn't waited so long (it's only a 20 minute drive). The trail was beautiful, and I loved running it. I started my run at about 10am and felt pretty good. The sun was out, the air was still slightly cool, and I wasn't hungry. I did notice that my pace was slower than normal, but for the most part the first five miles felt fairly normal. I had downloaded a sermon that I missed from the weekend we had guests in town and had it playing on my iPod. Our pastor was speaking about the spiritual discipline of solitude, which I thought was perfect for my solitary run. That lasted for about four miles, and when the sermon was over, I switched to music shuffle. I started to get tired near the halfway point and stopped to stretch and breathe before turning around for the second six miles. For the next four miles, I thought about God in every single step I took. Exhausted, sluggish, and ready to stop, I prayed that He would give me the strength to put one foot in front of the other and keep going. I reflected on Jesus' own journey on Good Friday over 2000 years ago, the pain he endured, the path he walked carrying his cross. I thought about how He could have stopped it at any point, but out of His incredible, merciful, abounding love for us, He kept going. Normally, I run just for myself, but on Friday I ran for Jesus. I know that my pain was nothing compared to His, but I was thankful for an experience that helped me feel so close to Him. I know that I couldn't have finished in my own strength, and I realized that I should really spend more of my life depending on God for every step instead of trying to control everything myself.

At mile 10, I passed a couple from our Bible study running the other direction. We shared surprised smiles and waved to each other, continuing on our respective paths. It was just the encouragement I needed to go the last two miles. A simple smile, a friendly face, a reminder that God has given us a family of believers for support and encouragement during the tough times in life. I admit, I still spent a little bit of time walking there at the end, and my average pace was about 30 seconds per mile slower than last week's long run (10'15"/mi), but I finished. And, even more importantly, I stayed faithful to my commitment to God, and He was faithful to pull me through.