Tag Archives: running

to be her is surely blinding

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Well friends, I did it! Today was my second 10K and, true to my previous post, I finished. And I PR’d (1:18:36, off a little more than 4 minutes from my last 10k, or about 42 second a mile)! No one stopped me for directions. And, I did get brunch afterwards, and Dunkin Donuts, and also a turkey sandwich for lunch later from our favorite Santa Monica sandwich spot.

Overall the race wasn’t too bad – the weather was beyond, my playlist was out of this world (Thanks Cor and Lauren!) and I was feeling it with all the running and yoga prep I did. Plus, being surrounded by other runners and supporters doesn’t hurt!

BIG thanks to Mike, who not only LET ME BORROW HIS SUNGLASSES FOR THE RACE (which is like, a really big deal here in the bright + beautiful LA) but also waited for us to finish, stood around while we got drinks/water, and also took a million photos for us!

More photos to come, but here are a few:

 

10k

dunkin

 

all the things, baby, that we could be

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I’m running a 10k on Saturday. It’s the same one I ran two years ago with a gaggle of friends. Per the usual, I’ve been sick on and off, and traveling, and I have a blog, and a life, and I like a home cooked dinner and a relaxing Sunday, and usually I’d rather be doing yoga, and all that balance and stuff, so I haven’t trained 100 percent to the schedule. I was discussing this with my dad the other day, and he sounded worried. “Don’t worry, Dad, I’m not Nikki. I won’t push myself too hard,” I proclaimed.

In case you don’t know my sister, she’s the champion of competitive – if you think I am competitive, you’ve got another thing coming. She is the first to beat the heck out of a PR, I’ve seen her train for a triathlon that I at first laughed at (Nikki, swim a mile in open ocean?!), and if you tell her she can’t do something watch out because unless it’s pay attention to someone for a LONG time, she’ll not only DO it, she’ll do it BETTER than you.

Which, this is all to say I used to be like that, but no longer. I am pretty competitive, but at the end of the day I find victory in not over stressing about something that is self imposed (like, say, running a 10k in December.) I used to obsesses over races and psych myself out to the point of being so stressed about a race that it just wasn’t enjoyable (Unlike Nikki, who managed to get the competitive genes and also all the mellow genes). But I’ve chilled over the past couple of years, and I know this: I can move my body 6.2 miles, whether it’s running or not.

So I will go, I will run it, I will hopefully beat my 10k PR, and if not, eh, and then hopefully someone will feed me brunch.

Tonight I went out on my last run before the big one, and it was just a quick (ha! that’s a lie, never let runners tell you anything is that quick) two miles. I figured I would take my 10k playlist for a run and see how it went, and I would try to truly run the whole two miles (I almost always stop for a little walk/death in the middle of my runs, usually up the one hill I’ve decided to incorporate into my route.)

It didn’t go as planned. Instead of running the whole time, I got stopped for a few minutes when a stranger asked for directions. It always baffles me how often this happens to me (I do life in Hollywood, so there are tourists, but still) when I am RUNNING. But I guess people see a runner and figure they must live somewhere around here, and therefore can help them out? Anyways, needless to say I was a little bummed but I still ran a pretty consistent pace and managed a PR for this training.

And so, tomorrow will be yoga, and an early bedtime, and Saturday will be Santas and lots of families and racers for the Venice Holiday run. And I will finish. And if someone stops me for directions, I won’t sweat it. And then, brunch.

let those stories go.

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Last night you guys, I went running and it was freaking awful. I was so slow, my calves hurt, I kept having to stop and walk, I was hot and cold and sore and tired for no reason. It was only a two mile run and I should have been able to bang it out at my normal pace, and I just knew I was moving terribly slowly.

When I got home, I was tired and grumpy and frustrated, but I knew it all stemmed from my lack of yoga practice lately. When I was talking to T recently, she said something to me about how she always assumed I did yoga because I loved it so much. And I DO love it, so so much, but sometimes you get in a rut. You go to bed late for a week in a row, you get a cold that you can’t shake, and when you get home from a long day at work you want to watch TV or curl up with a book, not sweat it out on a mat.

But the thing is, watching TV and reading never do for my BODY (or, let’s be honest, even my mind) what I need them to. I’m not suggesting they be given up, and I think I’ve written this same post over and over again, because it’s always a struggle. But when I get back to it, and I get into a groove, and I get into a flow, I always, always think, I’ve missed this. So I did a yoga class I do a lot, and I was much more relaxed when I was done.

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I got out of work early tonight because the power went out at work, and I was excited because that meant I could catch up on an episode of Law & Order:SVU (I think I might be the only person who still watches this show) AND fit in a yoga class before I had to hop in a car for a few hours off to our Palm Springs adventure.

In the video, which is taught by my fave Canadian, Fiji, she says something that really stuck with me. It’s a video for injury prevention for runners – and she’s talking about injuries, and she says, “Don’t judge yourself for anything that’s happened, any injuries that you may have had. Let those stories go.” That meant a lot to me. Because sometimes when I am training for a race, I sabotage myself you guys. (Doesn’t everyone?) I obsessively track my pace, I am upset when I am slow, I chide myself for being hungry or tired or cranky when I should be training, I panic when I get sick and I’m off a week on my training.

But why? Isn’t this race in a few weeks for me? For my body? To keep me fit and healthy? The only person I want to beat is my 2012 self – which I believe is doable. But you’re always working on getting better and beating yourself up (at least, for me) doesn’t work. You have to be in the moment, in the today, and do the best you can with what you have. That’s all anyone can do. I will have down days. I will have amazing days. I will run 3 miles and have it feel like nothing, and run 1 mile struggling every single step. But coming to the mat – and hitting the pavement – and actually DOING something is what matters.

Show up. Let those stories go. Be here. Be moving forward, always.

Happy Friday folks. Hope you’re in your happy places.

i have the yoga police on speed dial.

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We’re cruising into the fourth of July weekend and I am looking forward to a three day weekend of BBQs, beaches, and relaxation. I have gotten my wedding dress back where it belongs (in a shop, rather than my closet where it will almost certainly become ruined) and things are moving along swimmingly on the wedding front, so I am feeling ready for a summer filled with fun, preparation, cooking (always), and seeing some friends along the way.

Last night I went to yoga and worked, for an hour and a half, on my thigh muscles and psoas muscle. I love a vinyasa class, but I can’t help coming back time and again to Iyengar, which focuses on postures in yoga, really bringing your awareness to what your body is doing at the actual moment it’s doing it.

Iyengar is a great choice for me for when I’m being taught by a physical teacher instead of doing a video at home. My teachers keep me honest, make me work for a pose, make me understand where my body should be, and why, and how. I love learning alignment and I can pull that through to my home practice because I know how something should feel and that helps me get myself into poses I thought were unobtainable.

Last night, as I hung out in shoulder stand with my thighs activated and working to keep my legs straight, my yoga teacher Jay proclaimed, “Firm those thighs…I have the yoga police on speed dial.” I love that he keeps us laughing, working, committed, and aware that our bodies are on as good as we make them be. I love finding strength in myself I didn’t see, but that he did, all along.

This summer, I hope to make more advances in my yoga practice as I train for a 10k in the winter. I’ve always found that balancing between yoga and running makes me feel the best, because too much running is hard on my feet (too much yoga, I find, is never a problem.)

What are y’all’s favorite yoga types and classes? I am always looking to deepen my practice and I am open to suggestions!

I hope this weekend is full of getting outside, maybe some yoga at the beach, and definitely sunshine, sea, and delicious foods. Have a great holiday weekend, everyone!

be each other’s light in the dark

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Happy Thursday, you guys!

Tonight it’s raining in Los Angeles (thank the Rain Gods) so when I went for a run, I left my music and headphones at home, gave Jeff my intended course, and headed off to run a mile and a half, part of week two of my 5k training.

Turns out when I run without music Radio Lab, I run much faster. I shaved 1:40 off of my pace, and although I definitely could tell I was running faster, I didn’t realize it was THAT much faster. Like, PR for my mile faster. Which is exciting because this time around, doing yoga EVERY time I run, I am not fatigued every other day when I head out, and my legs aren’t getting tired like they were before, because they are stronger, and looser, and better.

So, dear rain, thank you for falling over me as I ran, keeping me cool, forcing my personal best out of me, focusing me on my pace and my breath and the air around me.

And thank you, yoga, for keeping my legs prepared to move my body.

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Namaste // Happy Friday // Happy Rain // Happy Life.