If you go running at 9:30 in the morning in July here in Phoenix, it's hot. It was 100' when I walked out the front door this morning for my run. The sun was literally straight up over the city, which means very little shadows to be found. Now, my guess is there is about a 20' difference in temperature between being in the sun and getting under some shade when it's this hot out. That makes shade kind of important.
If you know much about me, you know I have two little Miniature Schnauzers, and I live in a high rise condo in the middle of downtown Phoenix. The point of me telling you this is that it means we have to walk our dogs in the middle of the city, even when it's 115' outside, multiple times per day. When you weigh 13 pounds, and you're covered in black hair, it doesn't take long for your core temperature to shoot through the roof. That being said, my dog Diamond doesn't like phoenix a whole lot during the summer.
When we take her for a walk on hot days, she will stop where she is without any notice and just turn her head and look back over her shoulders at our building. I always assume that she is thinking "Hey dumba$$, the building with the A/C is back there, why in the hell are you going this way?" She will do this some 10 or 15 times on a walk. When we go around the block, she will stick to the shadows the entire way. If there is no shadows, she will run from bush, to overhang, to doorway, to parked car, to shadow.
Well, today I figured out what the heck that is all about. Since I just started running after four weeks off because of my frikken toe, I have not spent much time out in this heat. I guess I have become a real Arizonian. You don't go outside if you can help it this time of year. Unless you are training for a marathon...
Today was a fantastic run, for about the first mile and a half. I looked down at my GPS Watch, and realized I was running about a 9 1/2 minute pace. Then out of no where, the heat reached up and kicked me right in the face. I hadn't even reached the turn yet, so I wasn't half way done. The next time I looked at my watch I was up to almost a 12 minute pace. That was when I decided to quit looking at my watch. My sleeves were caked in white from the salt stain of me wiping my face of sweat as I ran. I was starting to understand how Diamond feels. I realized (as I was scraping my elbow along the wall because I was trying to stay in the 14 inches of shade next to the building I was running next to) I was wearing black shirt and shorts and looking over my shoulder back in the direction of my building and A/C.
As I turned the corner and headed the two miles home, I started to think about whether I was going to make it back without stopping for a rest in the shade or some water. I don't know if I'm gonna make another 20 minutes in this stuff. But then I started thinking about my pal back home who just ran the Rock n Roll Marathon in Seattle and set a PR of 3:30:06. How the Eff am I going to finish a marathon if I can't keep going these last 20 minutes of a 40 minute run because it's a little warm outside. I have already set an internal rule that I never get to rest while I'm training. Take a shorter run if I have to, but I never stop running till I am back at Chase Field.
I needed to get my mind on something else. I started thinking about what I had read in a running blog from the D. C. area. She keeps track of how many people she says hello to until someone says hi back. I do it a little differently, but it's fun just the same. I keep a running tally of how many people say Hi back. Today I was 12 for 12, although one of them just gave me a wave. I think people must be friendlier here in Phoenix than out in D.C. I actually had a security guard waving to get my attention from his booth as I ran by, so he could say hello :). I am up to 68 out of 77 people saying hi back.
This is why you can't find a 5k fun run after April. It's cleanses the sole to run out here. This must be why people in Phoenix join gyms. So they're not out here counting hello's... But on the other hand, this is what it takes to get where I want to go. 26.2 is sill a very long way's away. I did not look at my watch as I was coming back down the stretch towards the ballpark. There was nothing left in the tank today. There would be no sprint towards the finish line. If I run past you, or you pass me, give me a shout, say hello, and try and get your a$$ into some shade.
Sunday, July 19, 2009
Wednesday, July 15, 2009
"Asking For The Sale" and my other random thoughts while running
You just opened the doors of your new business. You spent $14,538.96 on advertising for your grand opening. You have a woman in your lobby who just experienced your product and service, and she is impressed as hell. You spend about 7 minutes talking about your business, and how it seems to be perfectly suited for what she needs. She is getting ready to walk out the door, what do you say?
"Let's go ahead and get you signed up?" Nope.
"It looks to me like this is perfect for you. Does this time slot work, or would Monday at 9:00 be better?" I wish.
"We have a couple of different options for payment, which one is going to work for you today?" Sure (not).
How about... "Thanks for coming in, let me know if we can answer any more questions. Hope to see you back soon."
Holy Crap! Talk about going for the jugular! That's just the sort of Take No Prisoners attitude I like to see when you are going for the close (no effin way)... C'mon people, ask them to buy! Haysoos M. Christopolis! Aren't you here to make money???!!!
Why do we all feel like it is dirty to ask someone to buy the product they came here to test out? It's called customer service. It is the final step in helping the customer. It is your obligation to help them make a choice. Yes or No. There is no place for Charlie brown wishy washy B.S. Remember, they called you to ask about your product or service. They ARE interested in spending money. That's why they are here. HELP THEM!
This is my mind works when I run.
Ooops, this is a running blog... What do you think about when you are running? Bills? The brown stains on the sidewalk where the water from the sprinklers has been baked in by the 114' temperatures? Do you lose yourself in the music from your ipod?
I actually catch myself sometimes while I'm running and say, "Do normal people think about this kinda stuff when they run? Do normal people think "Man, that would make an awesome bar" as they run by every cool vacant building? Or as they sprint by a Corvette, do all normal people think to themselves, "Someday... I can't wait." How often do normal people think "If that car lost control and came barrelling at me, what way would I jump? I wonder what page my horrific accident would make in the paper? I hope the traffic doesn't make people I like to be late for dinner."
It would be great to be normal. Then I could just think about things like, "Cool, my toe doesn't hurt as much as I thought it was going to." or "Can I make my Garmin have sound an alarm after every mile, or quarter mile?" But then I would get into things like "Why in the hell did I buy a frikken Garmin Forerunner 405 GPS-Enables Sports Watch? I don't run with an ipod because I am the most electronically illiterate person on the planet. I have to ask my wife how to use hers every single time, just to turn up the sound or change songs. What makes me think I will ever figure out how in the hell to work this thing?" (Hey wait, is that a butterfly?)
Do normal people actually wait for the light to turn green before they continue across the street when they are running? Do they wonder if other people do?
But then I start to think about what I am doing. Do normal people get up and run six miles at 5:30 am when it's already 90" outside. Do they get such pleasure out of it that they feel the need to write about it? Do normal people plan their packing for a trip around "Do I need to take a bigger suitcase so I can take my running shoes?" Is the first thing they think about when they get up in the morning "I can't wait to get to the point in my run where I have to turn right and make it four miles, or go strait, and make it 6.2 miles. I can't wait to go strait. Do normal people hit themselves in the forehead when the alarm goes off in the morning as a way to remind them to get the hell out of bed, and not hit the snooze button?
I signed up for a Marathon. Normal people do not run 26.2 miles. I am not normal. Eff normal. Get your ass outta bed and get some exercise. It doesn't have to be 26.2. It can be 2.6. I can take you a month of Sunday's to reach 2.6 miles. Get outta bed. Smack yourself in the forehead.
"Let's go ahead and get you signed up?" Nope.
"It looks to me like this is perfect for you. Does this time slot work, or would Monday at 9:00 be better?" I wish.
"We have a couple of different options for payment, which one is going to work for you today?" Sure (not).
How about... "Thanks for coming in, let me know if we can answer any more questions. Hope to see you back soon."
Holy Crap! Talk about going for the jugular! That's just the sort of Take No Prisoners attitude I like to see when you are going for the close (no effin way)... C'mon people, ask them to buy! Haysoos M. Christopolis! Aren't you here to make money???!!!
Why do we all feel like it is dirty to ask someone to buy the product they came here to test out? It's called customer service. It is the final step in helping the customer. It is your obligation to help them make a choice. Yes or No. There is no place for Charlie brown wishy washy B.S. Remember, they called you to ask about your product or service. They ARE interested in spending money. That's why they are here. HELP THEM!
This is my mind works when I run.
Ooops, this is a running blog... What do you think about when you are running? Bills? The brown stains on the sidewalk where the water from the sprinklers has been baked in by the 114' temperatures? Do you lose yourself in the music from your ipod?
I actually catch myself sometimes while I'm running and say, "Do normal people think about this kinda stuff when they run? Do normal people think "Man, that would make an awesome bar" as they run by every cool vacant building? Or as they sprint by a Corvette, do all normal people think to themselves, "Someday... I can't wait." How often do normal people think "If that car lost control and came barrelling at me, what way would I jump? I wonder what page my horrific accident would make in the paper? I hope the traffic doesn't make people I like to be late for dinner."
It would be great to be normal. Then I could just think about things like, "Cool, my toe doesn't hurt as much as I thought it was going to." or "Can I make my Garmin have sound an alarm after every mile, or quarter mile?" But then I would get into things like "Why in the hell did I buy a frikken Garmin Forerunner 405 GPS-Enables Sports Watch? I don't run with an ipod because I am the most electronically illiterate person on the planet. I have to ask my wife how to use hers every single time, just to turn up the sound or change songs. What makes me think I will ever figure out how in the hell to work this thing?" (Hey wait, is that a butterfly?)
Do normal people actually wait for the light to turn green before they continue across the street when they are running? Do they wonder if other people do?
But then I start to think about what I am doing. Do normal people get up and run six miles at 5:30 am when it's already 90" outside. Do they get such pleasure out of it that they feel the need to write about it? Do normal people plan their packing for a trip around "Do I need to take a bigger suitcase so I can take my running shoes?" Is the first thing they think about when they get up in the morning "I can't wait to get to the point in my run where I have to turn right and make it four miles, or go strait, and make it 6.2 miles. I can't wait to go strait. Do normal people hit themselves in the forehead when the alarm goes off in the morning as a way to remind them to get the hell out of bed, and not hit the snooze button?
I signed up for a Marathon. Normal people do not run 26.2 miles. I am not normal. Eff normal. Get your ass outta bed and get some exercise. It doesn't have to be 26.2. It can be 2.6. I can take you a month of Sunday's to reach 2.6 miles. Get outta bed. Smack yourself in the forehead.
Thursday, July 9, 2009
"Swept Out To Sea While Running"... or "Rio Shane"
O.K. So I am still not running because of this toe thing. I am not sure what to do, I have never had an injured toe before. I just got back from vacation in Puerto Vallarta, and I didn't even take my shoes with me. If I had, the following story would be strangely different...
We are all staying in a four bedroom timeshare on the beach, so when I got up from bed and went out to the living room for my morning coffee with tequila (hey! I am on vacation in Mexico. Don't judge!), Shane was already up as usual. "Yo Man, I want to go for a run on the beach" say's Shane. Shit, I really want to go as well, but I didn't bring my shoes for a reason. I want this thing to heal so I can continue training for my marathon.
Me: "Give me a second to finish my coffee and think about it".
Shane: "K"
Now I sit down on the lounge chair and look out over the beach at the beautiful ocean and start to enjoy my coffee. It really is a perfect morning. There was heavy rain last night, but the only reason you can tell at this point is that the mosaic stone decking around the pool 8 floors below is still wet. There is not a cloud in the sky, a beautiful morning for a run... I'm not going.
Me: "Shane, I'm not gonna go, I didn't bring my shoes for a reason. And as much as I would love to go running barefoot on the beach, I want my frikken toe to get better. I don't want to risk another three or four weeks with an effed up toe".
Shane: "All right, you stay here in the condo, while I go out for a run on the beach all by myself".
Me: "Go to hell. Have fun".
And Shane walked out the door barefooted with his Ipod strapped on, while I finished my drink (I mean coffee). A minute later Shane appeared from below and walked out past the pool and onto the beach. He took a left and started running down the sand along the gentle waves of the waters edge. As close to a dream moment for a runner as there comes. He disappeared behind the neighboring scyscraper, and I went on with my morning, and a second cup of coffee (yes, with tequila).
We start a game of cribbage and forget all about Shane for a little while. I was counting my crib as Shane walks in the front door of our unit, dripping from head to toe.
Shane: "Well. That was a nice swim".
Me: "Was it on purpose"?
Shane: "Not so Much."
Me: "What the hell did you do?"
Now you need to know Shane to really appreciate the rest of this story. Shane is pretty, and he is a good dancer. So when he tells a story, his whole body moves to try to help you understand what's going on. When he starts by telling us that he was just running along the beach, jamming out to the music on his Ipod, not having a care in the world, we are already laughing our asses of at the way he is exaggerating his arm swings and bobbing his head to the music. He is mimicking himself, running more like a dancer prancing across a stage.
Shane: "So I'm running along the beach, and it's frikken fantastic! The sand is hard along the water, so it was easy running, and it's the perfect temperature outside. I was running along, got about three quarters of a mile down the beach, and there was a washout from last nights rain in front of me. I looked up, there was a couple walking towards me from the wash, and there was another couple on the other side of it walking away from me. I just assumed that they had just walked across it."
"I took my first step in, and its about 6 inches deep. i took my second step in, and its about 6 inches deep. I took my third step in, and it's Shane deep." And as he says this, he holds his hand about six inched over his head, showing us the water was over his head. "it's like I was just shaken awake from a runners coma! I am under water, trying like hell to figure out what in the eff just happened as I'm trying to get myself to the surface so I can breath." I finally get my head above water, and "what the eff", I'm 20 feet out to sea, looking back at the beach, dog paddling in water way over my head!"
Me: "Holy Shi+, what did you do?"
Shane: "The first thing that goes through my head is Eff, my Ipod! But then I realized it was still playing music in my ear... and then...just like that the music stopped." And now he shows us his Ipod and ear buds hanging from his hand, knowing they are ruined.
Me: "Damn dude, are you o.k.?"
Shane: "All I was thinking was ""I wish Adam was here with me, because he either would have been ahead of me, and it would be his ass out here swimming off shore, or at least I wouldn't be out here alone!!!""
I was crying I was laughing so hard. I tell you., as he is describing the size of the washout "It was real small, It never entered my mind that it might be over my head". I was laying on the floor curled up in the fetal position sucking my thumb. This is some funny shi+. "The guy behind me had been keeping pace right along with me. When I came up for air, he was just continuing his run back the other way. He didn't even stick around to see if I was gonna come back to the surface". Now that is one cold hearted American tourist...
We let him finish the story, and have a good laugh at Shane's expense. We are good friends, so it's o.k. to laugh at each others misfortunes, when you end up alive. The next morning Jane and I went for a walk along the beach in the same direction Shane had run the day before. When we came to the edge of the "Washout" Shane had described, we both lost it laughing. In front of us was a full on river. I'm talking about a 30 to 40 foot across river with waves 2'-3' high, that was no more mistakable for a washout then seeing a California Redwood and thinking it was a toothpick.
Shane, even though sometimes I think you might be a god, your not Jesus. Not even you, or anyone else for that matter, are gonna run a cross a full size effing river! And last....as we learned on our last vacation.....there are crocodiles in the rivers in Mexico!
I know I did not do this story justice. You may have to close your eyes and give it a try.....Still sorry my toe hurts but sure am glad I didn't go for that run.
We are all staying in a four bedroom timeshare on the beach, so when I got up from bed and went out to the living room for my morning coffee with tequila (hey! I am on vacation in Mexico. Don't judge!), Shane was already up as usual. "Yo Man, I want to go for a run on the beach" say's Shane. Shit, I really want to go as well, but I didn't bring my shoes for a reason. I want this thing to heal so I can continue training for my marathon.
Me: "Give me a second to finish my coffee and think about it".
Shane: "K"
Now I sit down on the lounge chair and look out over the beach at the beautiful ocean and start to enjoy my coffee. It really is a perfect morning. There was heavy rain last night, but the only reason you can tell at this point is that the mosaic stone decking around the pool 8 floors below is still wet. There is not a cloud in the sky, a beautiful morning for a run... I'm not going.
Me: "Shane, I'm not gonna go, I didn't bring my shoes for a reason. And as much as I would love to go running barefoot on the beach, I want my frikken toe to get better. I don't want to risk another three or four weeks with an effed up toe".
Shane: "All right, you stay here in the condo, while I go out for a run on the beach all by myself".
Me: "Go to hell. Have fun".
And Shane walked out the door barefooted with his Ipod strapped on, while I finished my drink (I mean coffee). A minute later Shane appeared from below and walked out past the pool and onto the beach. He took a left and started running down the sand along the gentle waves of the waters edge. As close to a dream moment for a runner as there comes. He disappeared behind the neighboring scyscraper, and I went on with my morning, and a second cup of coffee (yes, with tequila).
We start a game of cribbage and forget all about Shane for a little while. I was counting my crib as Shane walks in the front door of our unit, dripping from head to toe.
Shane: "Well. That was a nice swim".
Me: "Was it on purpose"?
Shane: "Not so Much."
Me: "What the hell did you do?"
Now you need to know Shane to really appreciate the rest of this story. Shane is pretty, and he is a good dancer. So when he tells a story, his whole body moves to try to help you understand what's going on. When he starts by telling us that he was just running along the beach, jamming out to the music on his Ipod, not having a care in the world, we are already laughing our asses of at the way he is exaggerating his arm swings and bobbing his head to the music. He is mimicking himself, running more like a dancer prancing across a stage.
Shane: "So I'm running along the beach, and it's frikken fantastic! The sand is hard along the water, so it was easy running, and it's the perfect temperature outside. I was running along, got about three quarters of a mile down the beach, and there was a washout from last nights rain in front of me. I looked up, there was a couple walking towards me from the wash, and there was another couple on the other side of it walking away from me. I just assumed that they had just walked across it."
"I took my first step in, and its about 6 inches deep. i took my second step in, and its about 6 inches deep. I took my third step in, and it's Shane deep." And as he says this, he holds his hand about six inched over his head, showing us the water was over his head. "it's like I was just shaken awake from a runners coma! I am under water, trying like hell to figure out what in the eff just happened as I'm trying to get myself to the surface so I can breath." I finally get my head above water, and "what the eff", I'm 20 feet out to sea, looking back at the beach, dog paddling in water way over my head!"
Me: "Holy Shi+, what did you do?"
Shane: "The first thing that goes through my head is Eff, my Ipod! But then I realized it was still playing music in my ear... and then...just like that the music stopped." And now he shows us his Ipod and ear buds hanging from his hand, knowing they are ruined.
Me: "Damn dude, are you o.k.?"
Shane: "All I was thinking was ""I wish Adam was here with me, because he either would have been ahead of me, and it would be his ass out here swimming off shore, or at least I wouldn't be out here alone!!!""
I was crying I was laughing so hard. I tell you., as he is describing the size of the washout "It was real small, It never entered my mind that it might be over my head". I was laying on the floor curled up in the fetal position sucking my thumb. This is some funny shi+. "The guy behind me had been keeping pace right along with me. When I came up for air, he was just continuing his run back the other way. He didn't even stick around to see if I was gonna come back to the surface". Now that is one cold hearted American tourist...
We let him finish the story, and have a good laugh at Shane's expense. We are good friends, so it's o.k. to laugh at each others misfortunes, when you end up alive. The next morning Jane and I went for a walk along the beach in the same direction Shane had run the day before. When we came to the edge of the "Washout" Shane had described, we both lost it laughing. In front of us was a full on river. I'm talking about a 30 to 40 foot across river with waves 2'-3' high, that was no more mistakable for a washout then seeing a California Redwood and thinking it was a toothpick.
Shane, even though sometimes I think you might be a god, your not Jesus. Not even you, or anyone else for that matter, are gonna run a cross a full size effing river! And last....as we learned on our last vacation.....there are crocodiles in the rivers in Mexico!
I know I did not do this story justice. You may have to close your eyes and give it a try.....Still sorry my toe hurts but sure am glad I didn't go for that run.
Saturday, June 20, 2009
Tough to run on a broken toe...
You would think that with the name "Run Into Shape", I would be posting about running. Not today. Today, I will be posting about wanting to run, but that's not gonna happen with a frikken giant swollen toe. I gave it a try this morning, and chickened out after a block of pain (which is pretty funny if you new how much heartache I gave my wife when she wouldn't go running with me because of her broken toe..). I leave for a week on the beach in Purto Vallarta, and I don't want to risk needing crutches to walk down to the bar for an ice cold beverage with an umbrella in it.
I spent last week in Calgary Alberta, and probably broke my toe while training the staff at the new gym (I don't want to make this sound tough guy, I was pretending to be a five year old member at the time). Now my version of running into shape is getting off the couch and grouching "damn my toe hurts". Instead of losing another five pounds before my vacation, I will probably be up five more by the time we lift off on saturday.
When I started getting running into shape back in February, I was at two bills. I was at 184 this morning (178 last week, but Calgary was awesome!). I was hoping to be down to 170 by vacation, but that doesn't seem like it's going to happen. I ordered myself a toy slash tool to see if I can't get some more wieght reduction out of my running. I think I have been going at a pace that is not burning enough calories(running like a woose).
I always hear about runners with injuries not being able to train for whatever it is they're chasing, but those are usually running related. These people didn't catch their toe and do an abrupt 180 while trying to slide on a mat that was engineered specifically so that you can't slide on it... Go figure. That being said, I hope to be able to go for a run or two before next weekend. If not, I guess I will break in my new Garmin Forerunner 405 GPS Enabled Sports Watch in PV.
I spent last week in Calgary Alberta, and probably broke my toe while training the staff at the new gym (I don't want to make this sound tough guy, I was pretending to be a five year old member at the time). Now my version of running into shape is getting off the couch and grouching "damn my toe hurts". Instead of losing another five pounds before my vacation, I will probably be up five more by the time we lift off on saturday.
When I started getting running into shape back in February, I was at two bills. I was at 184 this morning (178 last week, but Calgary was awesome!). I was hoping to be down to 170 by vacation, but that doesn't seem like it's going to happen. I ordered myself a toy slash tool to see if I can't get some more wieght reduction out of my running. I think I have been going at a pace that is not burning enough calories(running like a woose).
I always hear about runners with injuries not being able to train for whatever it is they're chasing, but those are usually running related. These people didn't catch their toe and do an abrupt 180 while trying to slide on a mat that was engineered specifically so that you can't slide on it... Go figure. That being said, I hope to be able to go for a run or two before next weekend. If not, I guess I will break in my new Garmin Forerunner 405 GPS Enabled Sports Watch in PV.
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