One Proud Abba (Dad)

This is me and Lil Ansky after the G.R.A.C.E. 9/11 Tribute 5k/2k Run in Glen Rock, NJ on July 4. While this is not the first race she ran, it is the first one we ran together. We decided to run the 2k distance and had a blast. With the exception of a short walk break Lil Ansky ran almost all of the 1.2 miles. When we reach the split between the 2k and 5k courses, she asked how far we've run. When I told her 1 mile, she said "all ready?" I asked her semi-jokingly if she wanted to run the 5k course instead. She thought about it for a moment and decided I against it. I didn't push her because I wanted to keep the experience fun and memorable.

That's exactly what it was fun and memorable. The atmosphere at the race was exactly what a July 4th race should be, relaxed. There were some competitive runners but for the most part, there were lots of parents running the race the with their kids. A few minutes after we finished she asked me when the next race is. I am thrilled that she is enjoying it and that running is bringing us closer together.

Priceless

Lil Ansky has been nudging me for quite some time to run with me. Usually it's on Sunday mornings after I've come back from a long training run and I tell her "some other time, when I didn't just run 20 miles." I feel really guilty about it because she is starting to get interested in running and I should be doing what I can to encourage her. I'm also passing up on an opportunity for some quality Daddy/daughter time, something I should be relishing, especially as she gets older (She'll be 10 at the end of July).

I had a short (for me) run on the calendar this past Sunday, 20 minutes in zone 2 followed by 40 minutes in upper zone 3 and we didn't have anywhere to rush to Sunday morning. When I got home from my run, I asked Lil Ansky if she wanted to go running. She could barely contain her excitement and went up to her room and changed (if only she would do this every morning).

I thought the best place to go was the local high school track. The surface is soft and it's flat. We warmed up by walking a lap then I asked her if she wanted to run. After running an entire lap, we recovered by walking. We then alternated by walking 300m and running 100m. She even got cute and took off in a sprint and asked me if I could catch her. I did what any father would do, and let her win. Several people on the track commented to me how nice it was that we were exercising together. All this time, we chatted about school, her friends, what she was looking forward to most about  summer, and running.

We ended up doing a 5k run/walk. When we were done she gave me a big hug and told me how much fun she had and that she wanted to do to it again next week. She also said that she wants to run the 5k in November to benefit her school and that she wanted me to be her coach. My heart melted.

After our time on the track last Sunday, I realized that this is something that I need to continue doing with her regardless of how many miles I ran earlier in the day. Not only is it good for her health but I feel like we now have something to bond over. Quality daddy/daughter time is priceless and better than any individual running accomplishment.

Race Report: NYRR Celebrate Israel 4 Mile

This past Sunday was the inaugural NYRR Celebrate Israel Run presented by the Jewish Community Relations Council (JCRC) of New York. The run was part of the Celebrate Israel festivities, including the Celebrate Israel Parade (fka Salute to Israel Parade) taking place in NYC throughout the day. When I saw this race pop up on NYRR's calendar, I knew I had to sign up. The original plan for the race was to run it easy since it would be my first run after the Vermont City Marathon. Since VCM did not go as planned, my legs were fresh I could run this hard if I felt like it and the weather cooperated.

The weather was nice. I don't remember the exact temperature but I do remember the humidity being low. After the Israeli and National anthems, it was time to race. The first mile was the typical clusterf*!k. Lots and bobbing and weaving, and lots of frustration on my part at people who did not line up honestly. There was no corral enforcement what so ever. Several times I almost ran people over as I was motoring up Cat Hill early in the race. The remainder of the race was uneventful and until I came through the finish line chute. NYRR CEO Mary Wittenberg was out there congratulating the runners and she stepped in front of of me as I was trying to slow down after finishing. Thankfully, I was able to slow down in time and avoid a collision.

My official time was 28:20 (7:05 average pace) which I would later find out was a 28 second PR.  I hung around the post-race festivities longer than I usually would. There was raffle where the grand prize was 2 tickets to Israel. I also got to meet some of the folks from JRunners. They are doing good work encouraging Observant men and women to take up running. I met Robin who just returned from her first trip to Israel. I also bumped into Joe who needed to run 5 miles to finish up his long run. His motivation was low and was considering bailing on the additional miles. Since I had to be in the City for the Parade, I offered to run with him. I ran at his pace and I didn't push him. I walked when he needed to walk and we got the miles done. He thanked me for the company and I enjoyed catching up with him.

After changing clothes, I made met my parents on 5th Avenue to watch the Parade. Mrs. and Lil Ansky were marching with a group representing Lil's school and my brother, sister-in-law, and niece marched with a group from the 92nd St. Y. When everyone was done marching we enjoyed a post-parade picnic in Central Park. Talk about a great day!

Passover 2011

It's hard to believe that Passover is over. So much goes into preparing for the holiday and now it's over. I had a great holiday celebrating with family in Boca Raton, Florida. My mom and aunt teamed up to make some amazing food, we drank some great wine, and the seders, while traditional, were still very entertaining. I also soaked up plenty of sun sitting poolside and at the beach.

I was only able to run during 4 of the 10 days I was away so I was determined to make them count. I had to early in the morning because, as soon as the sun comes up, it's way too hot to run. Coach planned out the 4 days like this:

 Monday (April 18, the 1st seder was that night): 20 minutes in zone 2, 1 hour in upper zone 3, cool down 10 minutes with an easy jog. The 20 minutes in zone 2 went fine but once I started the upper zone 3 portion of the run, I was instantly reminded why I hate running during the summer months. I started at 5:30 am and it was already 75 and 100% humidity. I know everyone is different but my asthma gets really bad when the humidity is high. I cut the tempo part of the run short at 55 minutes. My heart rate was much than it should have been for the effort I was exerting and I didn't want to risk an attack. 9.61 miles in 1:15:53 (7:53 average pace).

Thursday (April 21, first intermediate day of Passover): warm up for 8 - 10 minutes then run 4 x 7 minutes in zone 4 with a 2 minute recovery. My body felt fresh after 2 days of no running because of the holiday but I was somewhat nervous about another fast paced workout in the Florida heat. Thankfully it was less humid and I got the workout done. 6.83 miles in 53:30 (7:49 average pace).

Friday (April 22, second intermediate day of Passover): recovery run. very, very easy. This run felt easy but when I looked at the data after the run it was much faster than my recovery runs I do in NJ. I chalked it up to the pancake flat terrain in South Florida. No hills to speak of what so ever. 9.07 miles in 1:15:29 (8:19 average pace).

Sunday (April 24, last intermediate day of Passover): 2:45 in zone 2. After Shabbat, my mom and I mixed up my kosher for Passover "sports" drink and I portioned out some dates for Sunday's long run. Even though it's not the most exciting route, I stayed within my parent's development because there are plenty of water fountains and bathrooms. I also didn't want to stray too far from my parent's place in case I didn't feel well and needed to stop. I hydrated often, taking in 8 oz. of the drink every 35 - 40 minutes and eating 4-5 dates every hour (just as I would with gels). The last 6 miles were a grind. The sun was up and it was hot. There were a few moments during the last 45 minutes where I wanted to call it quits but I got through it. 20 miles in 2:45 (8:14 average pace).

Monday and Tuesday (April 25 - 26) were the last days of Passover, and today (April 27) I was traveling home from Florida. I definitely made my running days count, I logged about 45 miles over the 4 days  I got all my running done early, often before Mrs. and Lil Ansky woke up. Getting the miles in were important but so was spending time with family.

Balancing Running with Work, Family, and Observance

Last Sunday, I was a guest on the Geeks in Running Shoes podcast. On episode 17, Jason was talking about how difficult it was getting his miles while working full time, going to school, and having a family. While co-host Ray does not yet have a family, he is in school full time and often works long into the night studying and completing assignments.

Jason and Ray wanted to pick my brain and find out how I balance my running with work, family, and my Jewish Observance. Here are some of the tips I shared on the show.

1) Find that part of the day where you can run consistently: for me it's early in the morning before work. On most nights I am in bed at 10:00 and up at 5:00. I am usually out the door by 5:30. During the week, this affords me a solid hour to run before I need to be back in the house to give Lil Ansky breakfast and for me to shower, get dressed, and go to work. On the weekend I might start a little later but always before Lil Ansky wakes up. For those of you with kids, you how hard it can be to go out for a run once the kids wake up.

Early morning works for me, it may not work for everyone. For some of you, the evenings might be better. For others lunch time might work. The point  is find a time during the day and stick with it.

2) Run to work or school: If you can, leave a bag of clean clothes, towel, toiletries at work or school the day before and run to work the next day. You'll find it invigorating and the endorphins are better than a cup coffee. Lastly, you can show off at work or school by saying that you ran there that morning. 

3) For most of us, running is just a hobby: Unless you are getting paid to run or to train someone, running is something we enjoy doing, but it's not the most important in our lives. On the show, I told Jason and Ray that family and religious obligations ALWAYS come before running. I've blogged before about my observance of the Sabbath on Saturday and my observance of Jewish holidays. Those are days for me to go to synagogue, to reflect, and to spend time with family and friends. Running is off limits on those days.

4) Bring your family to a race: most local races have runs of various distances for the the kids. This is a great way to expose your kids to your hobby and get some miles in. Last Sunday there was a 5k to benefit Lil Ansky's school. I offered to run the 1 mile with her but she wanted to run it solo. I made sure to be there at the final stretch to cheer her on. Once she finished, she mentioned she wanted to do another one. This time of year is a great time to get the family involved. Many turkey trots are family friendly. It's a great time to put the competitive juices aside and have fun.

We spoke about other topics as well. If you haven't listened to the show you can download it here or from iTunes.

What works for you that allows you to balance running with work, family, and other obligations?

Labor Day Weekend

The theme of Labor Day weekend 2010 was family time.

Sunday
I've been nudging my dad and brother to come with me to a Yankee game for a while.Well our schedules finally aligned and we were able to go to Sunday's game against Toronto. Also joining us were Lil Ansky and my niece. My dad really enjoyed spending time with his two sons and two granddaughters. We brought food from home to avoid eating too much junk but it's hard to avoid it all together. We all shared a bag of popcorn, my brother and I had a beer each (at $9.00 per beer it's hard on the wallet to have more than 1). Later in the game, Lil Ansky and my niece shared a helmet cup ice cream. Despite the Yankees loss we all had a good time.

Monday
Mrs. Ansky had to work, so I had Lil Ansky all to myself. I decided to run long today. My assigned run was 2:15 in zone 2 with 3 minute surges every 20 minutes. The run was going really well until my right hammy tightened up about 1:45 into the run. I ran a few more minutes so I'd be closer to home and stopped at 1:51. I don't think it's anything serious but I spent some time tonight on the foam roller and stretching it out.

Lil Ansky and I had a lazy morning at home. I had some "grown up" stuff to do, pay some bills, take care of some synagogue business, etc...Finally after lunch, we decided to go out and enjoy the beautiful weather and play some mini-golf. We went to a "Joizy" themed course in Paramus and a blast. Here are some of our favorite holes.

Lady Liberty

 George Washington Bridge

Jersey Shore, no Snooki or Situation here. The next hole was the "Boardwalk" hole complete with sand and amusement games.

"E-Zpass" heading back on the Garden State Parkway to North Jersey from the shore

Abbot and Costello hole, both were born in NJ. Abbot in Asbury Park and Costello in Patterson

Because it was such a nice day, the staff allowed us to play a second time for free. Today would not have been complete without a visit to the local ice cream truck. It's nice that they pointed out which of the products were kosher.They know their customers.

Fortunately for me, this one was.

I hope everyone enjoyed the unofficial end of summer.

Greetings from Sunny Florida

The Anskys are having a grand ole time in Boca Raton. Our seders were really nice. Mom cooked up a storm, we drank some really good wine, soaked up some rays, and most importantly spending quality time with family, including my soon to be 99 year old grandmother.

I have been running. I won't bore you with the details. You can read about them on my Dailymile page. Yesterday was the only full day of Chol Hamoed (the intermediate days of Passover where it's permissible to run, watch TV, drive, etc...). After a leisurely morning at home, we spent the afternoon at South Beach Park hanging out on the beach, swimming in the ocean, and playing in the sand. After dinner, we took Lil Ansky to Boomers for a night a go-kart riding and arcade games.

Shabbat doesn't start until 7:30 p.m. in Boca so we took advantage of the long day by visiting the Wakodahatchee Wetlands in the morning. It's a habitat for herons, egrets, turtles, fish, and of course alligators. If you're a photography buff and find yourself near Delray Beach, FL I suggest you visit. After lunch, I helped Mom cook for Shabbat then it was time for a pre-Shabbat swim.

That's it for now. Shabbat is tomorrow which mean more quality time with family. Sunday is long run day. That should be interesting given that it's still Passover. I wrote about my Passover nutrition plan about a week before Passover, check it out here. I will definitely let you know how it goes.

Shabbat Shalom!

A Quick Update Before Passover

We made it safely to Boca Raton, Florida. We started out Saturday night around 9:00 p.m. so Lil Ansky would sleep and we'd be 8 or 9 hours into the drive when she woke up. All things considered, the drive went pretty well. We encountered a 5 mile backup in southern Georgia about 75 miles of Jacksonville and Mrs. Ansky drove through a driving rainstorm between Jacksonville and Jupiter. I have to say, she is a superhero. Not only did she drive through a torrential rainstorm but she also drove about 5 hours through the middle of the night so I can doze in the car and be alert for the morning shift.

Anyway, I did run this morning. I ran a quick 5 miles around my parents' development. Coach Jeff suggested I run for 40 minutes just to loosen up my legs after spending so much time in the car. The rain that we drove though in Northern and Central Florida made its way down to Boca Raton overnight and into the morning. Around 10:30 a.m. It stopped raining so I got changed and went out. I did about 5 miles in 43 minutes (7:53 avg. pace). Did I just say that a 7:53 pace was relaxing?

Speaking of relaxing paces...last Friday I ran to work. Since I was traveling on Sunday, I needed to get a longish run in before I left. The easiest way to accomplish that was by running to work. I ran 12.70 miles in 1:46 for an average pace of 8:26 average pace. That's pretty quick for me on a long run.

In any event, as with most Jewish holidays, there are 4 days (not including Shabbat) where I won't be running. Honestly, my body is looking forward to a few extra days off. I am looking forward to spending time with my family, 2 entertaining seders, and enjoying my mom's delicious food. I'll end this post post with a picture. Ever since we started coming down to Florida for the holiday, we adorn the table with school projects that my brother and I made while in school. Now that Lil Ansky is in Jewish Day School too, we now include her projects as well. In this picture there are seder plates, matza covers, and Elijah's cup. My mother gets a lot of what we call, nachas which means pride from displaying these items. Happy Passover to everyone celebrating.

The Things Kids Say and Do

• We are driving to Florida this year for Passover vacation due to the high cost of plane tickets. We will be leaving home Saturday night and hope to arrive at our destination very late Sunday night. When we decided to drive Lil Ansky asked me "Daddy, you usually run long on Sunday what are you going to do since we'll be driving?" After taking a few minutes to think about she answered "I know! We can leave you on the side of the road and you can catch up with us 20 miles later!" I couldn't help but laugh.
• Lil Ansky's summer camp allows her to choose one sports and arts activity per session. The other day when I got home from work, I was greeted with the following "Daddy, I know what I want to do for one of my sports activities!" "What?" I asked. She replied with "track and field." I couldn't be prouder.

Statue of Liberty Trip

I don't know what the rest of the week and Labor Day weekend will bring but so far the highlight of my staycation has been yesterday's trip with my daughter to Liberty Island to see the Statue of Liberty. I can't remember the last time I was on Liberty Island, probably when I was my daughter's age (8). We picked up the ferry from Liberty State Park rather than trying to find parking near Battery Park in NYC. I work not too far from Battery Park and I've seen first hand the crowds of people waiting on line to go to the Statue. The crowds at Liberty State Park were much smaller. There was no wait at the security checkpoint and only a small line ahead of us for the ferry.

We had bought our tickets in advance but in order to get to the dock, we had to walk through the restored Central Railroad of New Jersey (CRRNJ) train station Neaarly two thirds of the immigrants who passed through Ellis Island went on to CRRNJ where they boarded trains to begin their new lives in America.While we were waiting the for the ferry, daughter and I both knew it was going to be a great day. The skies were clear and the view of Manhattan was spectacular. Visibility was so good that we were able to see the George Washington Bridge.

First stop on the ferry was the Ellis Island Immigration Muesum.My daughter is too young to truly appreciate Ellis Island so we decided to skip it and spend the afternoon on Liberty Island.

First thing we did when we got to the Island was eat lunch. There was a nice area along the water where we could sit and eat. Tickets to go all the way up to the crown were sold out but we were able to get tickets to go up the the pedestal observation deck. In order to go into the statue we had to go through a security checkpoint similar to that at an airport, empty pockets, go through metal detector, etc...  The first thing we saw after clearing security is the Statue's original torch. Then there is a small exhibit with replicas of the Statue face and feet and other stuff related to Lady Liberty. We didn't linger at the exhibit because daughter really wanted to get up to the pedestal.  One thing I forgot to mention...while we were on line for security a park ranger came out to inform everyone on line that the elevator to pedestal was out of order and that we would have to climb

this many steps in order to get to the pedestal observation deck. There were  a lot of moans and groans from those on line but daughter and I said "no problem." After the exhibit we started walking up the stairs. Daughter asked to stop for a few minutes here and there but we finally made it. Upon reaching the observation lever daughter said "that didn't feel like 156 steps!" I did remind her that we had to walk down as well.  "No problem!" she said.

A park ranger told us to look up and we could the inside of the Statue. Then it was time to go outside. The views from the pedestal were incredible. Here are pictures:

Ellis Island with Jersey City in the background

Brooklyn, Manhattan, and Williamsburg Bridges

Verrazano Bridge

Lower Manhattan

I just realized that I haven't posted any pictures of Lady Liberty herself. Here is one from the 11 pointed star. Finally after some soft serve ice cream, we boarded the ferry back to Liberty State Park and from there we drove home. It was a very special day.

My Weekend in 3 Parts: Part 3 - Six Flags Great Adventure

After my run on Sunday, my wife, daughter, and I drove down to Six Flags Great Adventure in Jackson, NJ. Our daughter earned a free ticket through a school reading program. Read for 6 hours and earn a free ticket. The staff activities office where I work offers half priced tickets so we only paid for one of our tickets. Not a bad deal if you ask me. Shortly after we left the house it started to rain. We thought about not going but our daughter's ticket expired on August 9th and she was really looking forward to going. It rained the whole time we were in the car and our daughter was starting to get disappointed that her special day would be ruined. Thankfully the rain stopped as soon as we pulled into the parking lot.

My wife is quite the thrill seeker so she was looking forward to riding the extreme coasters. I'm just the opposite, just looking at some of the rides scared me. Our daughter will go on anything she is tall enough for. She does like to watch the ride first to see if it's something she can handle. Just like the Disney parks in Orlando, Six Flags has characters walking around. We took pictures with Mr. Six, The Joker, Mr. Freeze, Tazmanian Devil, Wiley E. Cayote. The Riddler (Riddle: What goes around the world but never leaves the corner?), and Pepe le Pew.

Here are the extreme coaster my wife went on:

El Toro

Nitro

Great American Scream Machine




Rides we all went on:

Log Flume

 

Runaway Mine Train

Rolling Thunder

Fly Me to the Moon 3d Adventure

Parachute Training Center

   

Enchanted Teacups






While my wife was on Nitro, daughter and I took rides on:

The Big Wheel









and

Congo River Rapids. We went twice and got soaked. 

We enojyed Dippin Dots for a snack before lunch. I do not ear dairy after meat so we made sure to have our ice cream before lunch. I had cookie dough and our daughter had rainbow ice. The rainbow ice tasted like the ice pops I enjoyed as child from the Good Humor truck. Even though we packed food, we didn't feel like walking to the car for lunch so we took advantage of the Kosher food provider in the park and enjoyed a hot dog, falafel, and a hamburger. Even though it was pricey, we try like to support kosher food providers at amusement parks. If the kosher clientele does not suuport them, it would go out of business and our park experience would be less enjoyable. So thank you to Reuven Rachmani for an enjoyable lunch. 

We left the park around 7:00 p.m. and it started to rain again. Talk about getting lucky! Rain during the drive there and back but nothing in bertween. The food we didn't for lunch, came in handy on the way home.We were all hungry so we ate our sandwiches for dinner. We arrived home around 8:30 p.m. exhausted from a day of fun.

Soupy Sunday

Today was the first real oppresively humid day in Teaneck. I opened the dorr around 6:30 and the humidity just hit me in the face.The goal for today was 7 -8 miles at a nice easy pace. I ran a local route through some neighboring towns at what felt like a comfortable pace. I slowed on the one big hill but recovered nicely when the terrain flatened out again. I foud myself drinking more today than I usually do during an 8 miler. When I finished, my my singlet, visor, and shorts were all drenched in sweat.I stretched and hydrated some more and headed home to get on with the rest of my day. All in all, it was a good run, 7.80 miles in 1:06:03 for a 8:28 pace.

After I showered and ate breakfast, we headed out to the New York Hall of Science in Queens, we came home had an ealry dinner at our favorite kosher sushi joint in town, then headed over to Barnes and Noble so my daughter could pick out a free book. She earned it by reading 8 books. All she had to was bring in a sheet listing the books she read and she able to pick out a free book from a pre-selected list. The day ended at home with the 3 of us enjoying some ice cream sandwiches .

2 final things:
1) Congrats to Brandon and Scott for completing the New York City Triathlon. It was not easy day to be out there.
2) Happy birthday to my daughter who turned 8 today. She will be celebrating her birthday with her friends next Sunday at the local bowling alley. She is my biggest fan. In fact, tomorrow is sports fan day at her day camp. Most kids will be wearing Derek Jeter, David Wright, Eli Manning, etc..jerseys. What is my daughter doing? She's wearing a t-shirt from 1 mile run I ran with her with one of my old bibs pinned to it. How awesome is that?

Over 2 Bridges and Through Chinatown, to Bubby's Place We Go

I had to stop by my Bubby's (Yiddish for grandmother) place on the Lower East Side before work to help her out with something. G-d bless her, she is 97 years old and still lives by herself, gets around, and is sharp as a whistle mentally. She has a visiting nurse service come 3 days a weeks to help with laundry, showers, doctors appointments, etc.... other than that, she does everything on her own. I incorporated the stop into my morning run today. I did my usual run over the Brooklyn and Manhattan Bridges, but instead of taking a left off the Manhattan Bridge to go back work, I took a right and ran down Canal St. to East Broadway and then a left on Clinton St. When I showed up in my running clothes, Bubby asked me why I wasn't dressed for work. I told her that I run before work and I ran to her apartment. She exclaimed "you ran from your house (in NJ)!" I chuckled and told her that I ran here from my office. I did what I had to do, and after turning down multiple offers for food (what Jewish grandmother doesn't offer their grandchildren food?), I got on the subway (if I had more time I would have run back to work) and started my day.

Bubby is an amazing woman. She was born on the Lower East Side and has spent all her life there. I can't even imagine the types of experiences she's had. So much has happened in 97 years. As she is the only living grandparent I have left, I truly enjoy the time I get to spend with her.

Memorial Day Weekend Running and Other Goings On

Sunday: woke up at 5 and started my usual pre-run routine. I think I finally found pre-run eats that works. I had an english muffin with peanut butter. Sunday was one of those days where I just ran for fun. I had a route in mind and I did take my Garmin but I didn't pay any attention to it. The route I ran was 6.67 miles with 2 decent hills and 1 smaller hill. My legs felt stong going up the hills and I was able to recover quickly on the flats. I finished the run in 53:58 (8:04 pace). Map and splits can be found here:Local 6+ miles.

Later in the day my parents and my brother, sister-in-law, and niece came over for a BBQ. I grilled up some juicy steaks, made some corn, baked some fries, my wife made a great crunchy salad (which I hope to share on this blog), and enjoyed fruit salad for dessert. Only thing missing was beer.

Monday: Late Sunday afternoon, my daughter was invited to sleep over at a friend's house Sunday night. My wife and I enjoyed some quiet time at home. I was a little bummed becuase had plans been made in advance I would have been able to run the Ridgewood 5k. I didn't register becuase my wife, who is a Registered Dietitian in a nursing home, had to work today, so I supposed to be on daddy duty all day. Since there was no race day registration, I couldn't participate.

Instead, I woke up late (6:30, instead of my usual 5:00). My plan was to run a shorter route so I didn't need to go through all of my pre-run rituals. I did eat 2 Fig Newtons and drank some water. I left the house just before 7:30. Again, I took the Garmin but did not pay attention to it. I decided to push a little harder today since I was running shorter and a flatter route. I ran 4.42 miles in 34:10 (7:44 pace). Map and splits can be found here: Memorial Day 4.4.

We enjoyed another BBQ with friends. The host cooked up some chicken, burgers, hot dogs, there were also assorted salads, and brownies for dessert. Again the only thing missing was beer.

I love these long weekends. No big plans, just quality time with family and friends. Tomorrow is back to the grind.

On the Road Again

Went out for my first run since the NJ Marathon last Sunday. What a difference in the weather! This morning is was clear, breezy, and temps were in the upper 50's. I took it very easy. Ran from my house to Votee Park, did 1 1/2 loops of the park and ran home via State St. and Windsor Rd. My legs felt good and the pain that I felt in my left knee last week was gone. Total distance was 4 miles in 34:36 (8:39 pace).

When I got home, I was happy to see my wife still in bed. Our daughter woke up on her own and got her own breakfast so her mom wouldn't have to get out of bed early on Mother's day. I took a quick shower then went out to get my wife her favorite coffee. Our daughter and I showered her with cards and a small breakfast in bed.

I am very thankful to have my wife in my life. It's not easy being the wife of a marathoner. She's so supportive of me and of my running. I'm a very lucky man.

My Daughter Cracks Me Up

This brief conversation took place when I came back from my run this morning:

Daughter: "How far did you run?"

Me: "Only 6 miles."

Daughter: "Only 6 miles? That's not enough for you!"

I must have left out tapering when I talked to her about marathon training. BTW...she'll be 8 in July.

Update

Thanks to everyone who commented on my "What to do" entry. It's comforting to know that I'm not the only struggling with this issue.



This past Wednesday and Thursday, I woke up at 5:00, was on a bus into NYC at 5:30 and in my building in lower Manhattan at 6:45. I grabbed my sneakers and toiletry case from my cube and headed up to the gym. Wednesday I ran 4 miles on the TM at an 8:00/mile pace and Wednesday I ran 5 (also on the TM) at the same pace. I also made sure I was home before bedtime so I had some family time before my daughter went to bed.



One of the perks of my job is that I have every other Friday off. Today was one of those days off, so I woke up at 5:00 this morning and was out the door before 6:00 for a nice brisk 5.25 miles at a 7:50 pace. I was home a little after 7:00. That left me enough time to hop into the shower and put my daughter on the bus. She loved having me home this morning.



I've always been a morning person so for now I'm going to stick to the early morning routine. The running late at night thing does not wok for me. My wife needs some gym time too and she is not a morning person. Now if I can only find some inexpensive cold weather gear so I can outside before work. I can't stand the TM! Also, I'm itching to run the Brooklyn Bridge as the sun comes up. Too bad I can't a get a Garmin signal downtown.

What to do?

This is the first time where I've really had a conflict balancing running, work, and family. I recently took on a new position (more hours but not more $) at work that will most likely prevent me from running during luch time. I decided the best way for me to make sure I keep running is to leave my house around 5:30, get to my office around 6:30, run (either outside or on the treadmill) until 8:00, shower and be at my desk by 8:30. Before I took this job, I made sure my daughter was up and fed before I left the house around 7:00. Now, I will not be able to see her in the morning. She was very upset when I told her I wouldn't be with her in the morning. It broke my heart. My wife supports this idea knowing that she will be taking on additional responsibilities in the morning. She also knows how much running means to me and doesn't want to see me give it up. Ain't she great?

Anyway, if anyone out there is dealing with similar issues I'd be interested in reading about how you deal with it.