What does Han Solo have to do with Running?

I was running with a friend on Sunday and I said, "I totally feel like Han Solo right now." He replied, "Could you elaborate please?". To answer his question I pulled out one of my water bottles from my hydration belt as if wielding a lightsaber (yes, sound effects and all).

Side note, as a I searched for a picture of Han Solo for this article I realized that he doesn't even fight with a lightsaber. Oops. And here I thought I was being so clever. Sorry Star Wars fans.

As I'm increasing mileage I realized I have to pack water/Gatorade. So my question to my running club, do you prefer hand held water bottles or hydration belts? The answer was that everyone has a preference. Very helpful.

So I did some experimenting, and I must admit that I prefer the hydration belt. For anything over 12 miles I just can't stand carrying a bottle in my hand. So even though I look like I'm prepared to fight intergalactic war with a lightsaber, I prefer the belt. I don't look cool, but I'm practical.

Check out this great video from girl-in-motion for a demonstration on different hydration techniques (hand held vs. belt).

What do you prefer?

What Motivates You to Run?

Why do you run? What gets you out the door? What drives you?

What motivates me? The usual: staying healthy, being a role model for my daughters, challenging myself, and fitting into my skinny jeans (that is NOT me in the picture). But mostly because it makes me feel good. Sounds simple enough.

Even though I feel great at the end of a run, it is always a challenge to actually start running. Sometimes the hardest thing about running is simply starting the run. Sounds so simple: put shoes on, walk out door, run. But somehow it isn't.

But when I make it out the door and hit the road/trail it never ceases to amaze me how happy I am and how proud of myself I am. Then for the rest of the day I'm so glad that I got up and ran. (Insert pat on the back here.)

My running buddy told me about this quote he heard, "The only runs that I regret are the ones I didn't do"

This is my new motto. I'm writing in on a post-it and putting in on my alarm clock to get help guilt myself out of bed for my early morning runs.

So why do other people run? I found this great list of quotes when people were asked why they run. Here are my top two favorites from the list:

• “I would love to be a swimmer but I suck at it”
• “I’m addicted to collecting the finisher’s medals”

OK, this is cheesy but I can't resist...here is a list of motivational quotes about running.

• Racing teaches us to challenge ourselves. It teaches us to push beyond where we thought we could go. It helps us to find out what we are made of. This is what we do. This is what it's all about. -PattiSue Plumer, U.S. Olympian
• The miracle isn't that I finished. The miracle is that I had the courage to start. -John Bingham, running speaker and writer
• Whether you believe you can or believe you can't, you're probably right. -Henry Ford
• Top results are reached only through pain. But eventually you like this pain. You'll find the more difficulties you have on the way, the more you will enjoy your success. - Juha Vaatainen
• The body does not want you to do this. As you run, it tells you to stop but the mind must be strong. You always go too far for your body. You must handle the pain with strategy...It is not age; it is not diet. It is the will to succeed. - Jacqueline Gareau
• If God invented marathons to keep people from doing anything more stupid, the triathlon must have taken Him completely by surprise. - P.Z. Pearce

Why do you run?

Pilates for Runners

One of my many weaknesses...strength training.

I asked a few of my friends from my running club (Heart of the Valley Runners) what they do for strength training, and the consensus was Pilates. When I asked around for a recommendation for a pilates video (since I work from home with two small kiddos getting to a class isn't happening right now), I was recommended Ana Caban, Pilates Intermediate Mat Workout and Pilates: Abs Workout. I love these videos. The instruction is great for a beginner and I really appreciate how she is constantly instructing when to inhale and exhale.

However, that being said I think that taking a class would be better so that instructor can help with form (in Anna's videos she constantly refers to 'pliates stance', which until I did my homework had no idea what that was). Also, for me exercising around other people tends to feed into my competitive nature which makes me work harder and get more of a workout.

Now, I have only been doing pilates for four weeks, and I'm sure it is all in my head, but I already feel stronger, leaner and taller. My posture has improved and I feel great overall. And as a side note, I won my first race! Well, I was the first female across the finish line, and it was just a small local 5K race, but for me I was pretty darn excited.

So did pilates make me better runner (and help me to win the race)? Maybe not yet, but if I stick with it I think it will. According to Runner's World, "pilates moves strengthen the diaphragm, stretch tight muscles, and improve posture to help you run with less effort."

Pilates 4 Runners provides a list of reasons why runners should do pilates:

• Greater strength and muscle tone
• Improves performance during physical activities
• More efficient respiratory and circulatory systems
• Better posture
• A flatter stomach and trimmer waist
• Improved flexibility
• Less incidence of injury and back pain
• Increased joint mobility
• Stress and tension relief
• Heightens concentration and mental focus

For me to better understand how pilates helps my running, I wanted to find out what my body is doing while I run. Pilates Digest describes what the muscles in your body are doing while running, "Primarily, the hip flexors to pull the top of the leg forward, the quadriceps to extend the knee then tibialis anterior to flex the foot and prepare to plant the forward foot. Once down, that leg is pulled back using the glutes and hamstrings. The big issue here is that while in that running gait, the runner’s body is moving in the sagittal plane therefore the muscles that support movement in the horizontal and frontal planes are not challenged specifically."

So if pilates can help with my balance and strength to improve my running (and avoid injuries while helping me breath easier). That is enough for me. Pilates it is.

Running on an Empty Stomach

As a mother of two young kiddos, I jump at any opportunity to hit the road. Baby is napping, toddler is reading, husband gives the green light...boom I'm out the door. Did I just heat a huge lunch (practically a mini Thanksgiving feast? Yup!), oh well, an opportunity to run without having to push a stroller is worth the killer side ache.

Pre kiddos, I would strategically plan my runs. You know the childhood rule...no food two hours before swimming. As a child I was very strict on that rule when it came to swimming and as an adult I adaptedd it for running. But now, not so much. I run whenever I can.

So I run in the mornings...ouch. I'm not a morning person. Never have been. Never will be. However, that being said, I hit the road before the sun comes up. My current problem is that I am running on an empty stomach. I can barely make it out of be for the run, let alone wake up early enough to eat something and let it digest before running.

Christine Luff wrote in her article, Start the Day Right, "If you're a morning runner, it's tempting to skip breakfast because you want to maximize your sleep time and not have to wake up early enough to give yourself time to digest before running." That sounds familiar. So why is this so bad? According to Luff, "Running on an empty stomach may cause you to run out of energy. Your best bet is to eat a light snack or meal about 1 1/2 to 2 hours before you start running."

Ok, I always knew it was important to eat before exercising but I never really knew why. Martica Heaner describes it great in this article, “When you first wake up, you are likely to be low on energy...you have a limited supply of carbs...Even though the body has plenty of fat stored, for fat to be“burned”, or metabolized, carbs need to be present. Often, the liver’s carb stores are nearly depleted by the morning, so many people may wake up in the morning in a state of energy deficit, where there are not enough carbs to provide energy and to help utilize fat."

"So they need breakfast to infuse more energy into their body. If you skip breakfast and do a tough workout, you launch a depleted body into even greater depletion…Now your body is famished for fuel. However, you may not feel hungry in this state (known as “ketosis”) because your body has shifted to starvation mode to preserve its resources. Diminished hunger is one of the side effects. But a lack of stomach rumblings doesn’t mean your body doesn’t need fuel—it does. In fact, at some point it will demand more fuel—you’ll likely binge and go into a huge energy surplus to compensate. This ends up being a roller-coaster calorie ride for your body.”

So the moral of the story is...I'll be waking up earlier (ideally 2 hours before, but realistically 1 hour before) and eating before running.

So my next question, what do I eat before a run? I took this list straight from MadeToRun.com: (when I first got to this article I almost couldn't read on after seeing the picture at the top...you'll have to look and see for yourself)

• Almonds (excellent source of vitamin E)
• Eggs (one egg contains about 10 percent of your daily protein needs and nearly 30% of Daily Value of Vitamin K)
• Whole grains (one cup is usually good enough for 40% of your daily protein needs and includes a healthy mix of carbs)
• Oranges (tons of vitamin C and packed with water to keep you hydrated)Black beans (packed with protein, fiber and a lot of folate)
• Mixed greens (too many phytonutrients and antioxidants to count)
• Bananas (this super food is loaded with Potassium and helps prevent cramping)
• Salmon and turkey (both are extremely lean sources of protein and salmon contains high levels of omega 3 fatty acids)
• Walnuts (even more omega 3)
• Fruit (each fruit has an assortment of vitamins and phytonutrients so mix and match at will)