Thursday, February 24, 2011

A Running Buddy

"As a puppy she was inexhaustible, with the crazed eyes and restless bearing of an escaped convict. She needed almost constant attention."

Runner's World editor-in-chief David Willey wrote this in a recent post about his canine running companion, Trucha.  He got her as a puppy and logged countless miles throughout her life.  If you're a dog lover (or a running fiend), this is definitely a truly touching read...sad, but good (cue the Marley & Me music).

As soon as I read it, I posted it to Facebook, adding that the article "made me want to get a dog/running companion so badly!"

You can see where this is going...

enter...

the latest addition to my family (ok, basically to me)...

a new puppy!!

Isn't he the cutest thing you've seen since [enter celebrity baby name here]??

This little guy is a terrier/boxer mix and was abandoned with his four sisters in a box by the railroad tracks (cue Marley & Me music once again). 

Clearly, his life is on the right track now.  I adopted him this past weekend and he is now a permanent part of the household. 

And let me tell you...he's a handful. He looks calm and docile in this photo, but he let's loose when not in your arms.  Already, he's unrolled 1/2 a roll of toilet paper, woken me up in the middle of the night crying, had accident after accident in the house (I'm sure there's more of that to come) and is a bully when it comes to sharing toys with the other dog in the house, Brady.  Was it worth it when he curled up in my lap and fell asleep with his little head in the crook of my knee? Of course.

Also, you may have noticed that he doesn't have a name yet.  As of right now (Thursday 2/24 at 5:45 pm), he's Inmate 453083.  Eventually, he will have a name.  The hardest part is trying to please everyone. My mom likes the name Willie.  My best friend is pulling for Cam.  I added Manny to the short list.  It's too much pressure!

Whatever his name ends up being, I want him to be my running companion.  My running buddy.  The crazy dog on the leash pulling me down the street at 6 am.  I can't wait to get him out and about (not quite yet cuz he doesn't have all of his shots).  What I'm really excited about is creating a deep bond with him.  Yes, I've had dogs before and I've loved both of them.  But this one is MINE and he relies on me, and only me, to give him food, exercise and love.

Again, from David Willey's post, "We logged more miles together than I could begin to count, and I never doubted that she could keep going, even when I couldn’t."

I can't wait for that.

I'll leave you with this parting shot for good measure.  Check back for more updates on his name.  :)





Thursday, February 17, 2011

Did I find the key to success?

How we view success and the way that definition changes throughout our life span is such an interesting and intriguing process.  As defined by dictionary.com (does anyone use ole' mister Webster anymore?), success is "the favorable or prosperous termination of attempts or endeavors."  I wonder why they use the word termination...it has such an ugly and negative connotation.

Anyways, here's where I'm going with this one.  A few weekends ago, my dad flew in from Colorado to run at the USA Track and Field Cross Country Championships down in San Diego.  There are three divisions of this event (both with men's and women's races): master's, juniors and open.  My dad was going to run in the master's race (I think it's something like older than 40).  The really cool part about the whole thing is that some of the best runners compete in the open race.  I don't want to name any names right now (I have to get you to read on somehow), but we'll get to that part soon.

If you're astute enough, you noticed that I said my dad "was" going to race.  He had been training for this race for a while and was super stoked that it was nearby (on the western side of the continent) and that I was able to go with him.  About a week before the race, he did a hard track workout and shredded his calves.  That week, he went for two massages and two appointments with the physical therapist, hoping and praying that he would feel up to running at the championships.  When he got off the plane, I knew that there was no way he was going to be able to compete.  But as any crazy runner is prone to, he doggedly tried to will himself to believe he would not only be ok, but could race competitively.  No bueno, is what I said.
  
We went down to the race anyway (why would anyone pass up a gorgeous hotel and a chance to see top-notch racing?) and I had to practically beat into my dad that there was no way - NO WAY - that I was going to let him race.  He would injure himself even more and would be battling that for months to come.  It was hard to see him so excited and pumped for the race and then have to watch from the sidelines.  Success for him that day would have been racing and feeling well.  But success in my eyes was him being head-smart and listening to his body.  He's not a spry, young thing anymore, and listening to his body and taking care of it is key.

I have another success story, but let's look at some running superstars before we go on...

This is Shalane Flanagan, who won the open women's race. Two things to say about her -- when she runs, it looks like she's floating on the top of the grass.  Seriously, floating.  Secondly, I want her body.  To feel confident enough to run in a sports bra and bottoms like that is very desired. I guess being American record holder in the 3k, 5k and 10k will bring you tons of self-confidence.



This is Kara Goucher.  She went to the University of Colorado (boo) and has run in the Olympics and many, many, many big races.  She gave birth to her son in September of last year.  That's right, this is only 5 months after having a baby.  Amazing.
On the left is Kara.  On the right is her husband, Adam Goucher.  He's also a former Buff (boo) and won several NCAA championships and other titles.  I love that he was there rooting her on.  I need to find a man like that. :)







Ok, so this next success story belongs to me and I'm going to make it short and sweet.  The day after the XC championships, I ran in the Redondo Beach Superbowl Sunday 10k.  I PRd by almost 4 minutes (my time was 44:32)!  I was the 23rd woman across the line and the 6th woman in my age group.  Pretty cool.  While finishing with an average of 7:11 miles is amazing, the best part was what the two guys from work (who also ran the race) said: You're faster than I thought.  That makes a girl's day.  

Success before I started barefoot running was just to be able to do a little bit of running.  As I got further into it, success was going on long runs without pain.  Before my first 10k, I wanted to just make it to the finish line with a decent time.  Now, success is feeling good and loving what I'm doing.  I've definitely come to the "termination of my attempts and endeavors" but hopefully success doesn't stop here! 

"Don't aim for success if you want it; just do what you love and believe in, and it will come naturally." -David Frost