New York Awesome #5: Riverside Trial Run + Foods

In a previous week we made it out to Riverside to get a sense of the how the park was setup because we'd heard how pleasant it was. To up the ante yesterday we ran the actual path for the Asha 5k. After hearing how hilly the park is, I have to say that the path the 5k will take place on doesn't look too bad. There was one hill we had to make past, other than that most of it ran nicely alongside the river. At this point, I'm not concerning myself with speed but rather endurance. I'm still planning on taking it easy this Thursday (lighter jog) to allow myself and taking Friday off entirely to allow decent recovery for Saturday morning.

After the jog, we thought it'd be fun to take the bus downtown which ended up turning into more or less an hour long saga. We got off around Curry Hill though and had a nice snack of Samosa Chat at the fantastic Indian place called Curry Express. They're quite friendly there and the food is superior and cheaper than some of the 'restaurants' around the corner. Not a romantic spot but a tasty one.

Post snack I realized that I lost my knee brace so stopped back again at Paragon. (Needless to say it was no longer on my knee when I lost it). Returning to the store gave a second to ask the question - is it supposed to be snug and cut off your circulation? He said yes.

Lastly, we had lunch at Big Enchilada where I thankfully made myself call it quits after 2 tacos though I could've gone for me. Also a great fast food joint near union sq (in an area with many

Knee Brace Yourself

To fulfill my knees constant need for attention I caved in and bought the right one a brace (at Paragon Sports from Stromgren). After a quick measurement, I selected the medium. It was a snug fit. Very snug. Cutoff circulation snug - but I think that's how these things work right? In any case, the first run around Prospect Park was a success. The main areas where the knee would act up was the main incline and decline on the outer loop and your center of gravity shifts. The brace help in ease that. Additionally, if Riverside Park is as hilly as we've been told for my upcoming 5k I want to be prepared.

Awesome or Disgusting #8: Powerbar Gel: Double Latte Flavor

Yes, it is as disgusting as it sounds. Does it give you energy? I have to say, yes.

5k Training

I jogged (really slowly) the Prospect Park Outer Loop a third time since I started the 500 mile goal for the year. Since I'm still new too trying short distances I'm not being to hard on myself on timing. Over the next couple weeks and months, I'm slowly going to improve on it. In the meantime, I'm content knowing I can do it at granny-pace or slower.

Prospect Park Outer Loop = Pain or Good Times?

For the first time a jogged the full loop around Prospect Park. It's apparently 3.35 miles all the way around. That's not a huge feat I realize, but it certainly helped to increase my confidence. At the end my legs felt like jelly, but no immediate pain manifested. My back is now a bit soar however: I guess running on the treadmill with no incline has something to with this.


As for the year's goal of 500 miles - I've now hit over 125 which is on target for where I need to be a quarter into the year. Everything I do over 41.67 for this month, I can now apply to April. Here in the Spring I'm going to try to run a 5k or two - in Brooklyn and Manhattan there are plenty of these and they're usually for charity too.

The Kids of Today Should Defend Themselves Against the 70s

I hit 70 miles on the year's goal of 500 I'm happy to report.

The number 70 is apparently the number of the longest Interstate in the U.S running from Utah all the way to Baltimore on the East Coast.

It's also the decade in which two of my favorites movies take place: Starsky and Hutch and Anchorman

Goal Update

Now at 20.48 miles or equal to the cost of this Upton Sinclair audio cassette for the Jungle or the cost of a Silklite Vibrating Massage Pillow. Coincidence? Please advise.

.....but I Would Jog 500 Miles: Goal Update

9.69 miles to date ($9.69 by the way is the exact cost of a movie called Apollo 13 on cduniverse).

A small victory. Aiming for 42 per month (Or the ultimate answer to life).

Running Goal for the Year....

...is 500 Miles or equal to the Proclaimers committment.




Updates to come. So far I've probably notched 1 mile. Argh. It's not that bad - per day I need to do less than 2 miles but I know I'll get lazy around February. By the way, if anyone knows of a place to find a free webcounter so I can keep track of my miles (one of those thermometer things) for the the site please let me know.

1 for 1

Guess what? You can tell, right?! I did exercise today, the first day of the year. If you're keeping track at home, that means I'm one for one on the fitness front. How Ya Like Me Now? Or should I say, I'm bad?

The song is officially on my IPOD, and since it is, I have no excuse but to live up to it this year.