Runners Lounge

Great Blogs, They Spilleth Over

My poor Google Reader.  It just gave up.  It couldn't handle the pressure.  Day after day it would tell me that I had 1000+ posts ready to read.   Since I can't get enough of blogs, I kept adding and adding to my Reader - grouping, filing, categorizing them all so I wouldn't miss anything.  Now when I try to open it, it gasps for air begging me to cut back and catch up.

I created a monster.  A monster list of great running blogs.   And while that's not all bad there are days when I wonder if I will ever catch up.  How I look at it is that blogs are someone's house and I like to go "visiting" and see what is up at their place.  Hang out, look around, catch up on their life.   I just never seem to find enough time to "go visiting".   

While I couldn't possibly list all of the blogs I read, I thought I would give you an idea of a few of those I try to formally "visit" but at a minimum I am always lurking about:

When I need a good laugh

Nitmos, Vanilla

Seems like a real life runner like me (but writes 100 times better)

CoffeeBetsy, Nat, Nancy, Zoomylicious

Says it like it is and usually puts a grin on my face

Sarah Jo Austin, RunJess, Topher, Laura

Whose running never ceases to amaze me

Marathon Dude Bill, The Laminator, Bob, Ovens2Betsy, Heather

New to Me Blogs That Are Becoming New Favorites

ChicRunner, Dando

And there are literally hundreds of other blogs I have had the great luck to find and read and many of them I still find time to visit and read.  Most days I feel like the luckiest gal in the world.  I have an unlimited pool of reading material on running! 

The theme for this week's Take It and Run Thursday is Running Blogs.  I am looking forward to hearing about running blogs on your list.  I am going to try to find a some time to tidy up my reader and make a little room for some of your picks.  And then I am going to find some time on my social calendar for a little "visiting" this week.  Oh boy - I just can't wait!

The Great Community of Blogging Runners

More than the GPS, high-end running shoes, GU, MP3, the Champion Chip or even Under Armour, the arrival of blogging has done more for runners than any other technology.

I think back on the days of waiting excitedly for the arrival of my monthly issue of Runners’ World. I read it cover-to-cover, followed by the disappointment of closing the back cover and wait for next month’s issue.  Joe Henderson, George Shehan, Jeff Galloway, Hal Higdon, Kenny Moore—the list of writing running greats was fabulous, but they only made it to my mailbox once a month.

Nowadays I can read amazing race reports, rants about runs, inquiries about injuries, and some of the best humor and writing by just breezing through my Google Reader.  And my closest running friends are in neighborhoods, cities, states and countries I've never seen.

What I most appreciate about running blogs is how they unite ordinary runners.  Blogging runners share openly about their running and non-running lives.  It’s hard not to take in interest in perfect strangers because of what we have in common as runners.   

It’s dang near impossible to capture the greatness of running blogs.   Reading about a newcomer’s beginning experiences with running  takes me back to my early days of running when the newness was exhilarating.   Reading of a runner’s triumph over—or even current challenge—with weight is an inspiration.  Following a runner’s preparation for her first race, or an injured running comrade come back from an injury makes me want to be right there with them.

What else do I get from the running blogs?  Well, for sure I get a healthy dose of new information that enriches my running.  I’ve learned about more unique, fun, out-of-the-way great races in communities across the continent that I’ve put on my list of destination races.

But above all, the greatest power of running blogs comes across in one word.  Encouragement. 

Meeting other runners through their blogs is one of the most natural ways to extend, observe, and receive encouragement for everything runners accomplish or attempt.  Beyond “way to go” and “great race report!’  bloggers leave thoughts, prayers, quotes, humor, and expressions of hope for runners we’re highly unlikely to ever meet. 

And the encouragement is real.  I’ve carried with me during my long runs and marathons the words, support, and concern from friendly running bloggers. And when running struggles get harder, I draw on their comments and sincere wishes even more.  I tell my wife they’re the nicest running friends I’ve never met. 

Finally, leaving uplifting comments is more than half the fun of being part of the running blogging community.   A comment left at the right time with the right message will stay with a blogging running friend long after we’ve forgotten the words we dropped off.

I don’t know if I’ve become a better runner through blogging about running, but I’ve come to appreciate the greatness of people who also happen to be runners.

To our BFRs (Blogging Running Friends), thanks for opening your running lives plus so much more. To those not yet blogging and considering it, jump in.  The runners, their stories, and the conversations are awesome!

Bring On The Blogs

We have such an affection for running blogs here in the Lounge.   

Running blogs and their bloggers bring so much life, depth and variety to the running world.  They allow runners to find other runners who are like them, inspire them, teach them, challenge them or make them laugh.

Blogs were one of the forces that drove Tom and I to create Runners' Lounge.  We saw so much great running information be created and shared by running blogs, we knew that the running community needed a place to gather, meet, and be introduced to other runners.

When we launched the Lounge, we made sure the Search Profiles functionality had the ability to search runners with blogs.   But through suggestions of Loungers, we continued to hear that you want an even quicker and easier way to find great running blogs.

So we have added a "Blog Showcase" to the Lounge.  With just a click from Connect with Runners>Blog Showcase, you can access all the blogs of Runners' Lounge members.  From this page you can sort by Blog Name or by their Runners' Lounge Profile Name.   And if you are looking for a very specific type of runner, try the advanced search which allows you to search by up to 12 different specifications.

Whatever your preference, stop by the Blog Showcase and find a new blog or connect with blogs of Loungers you haven't visited for a while.  Your running will thank you for it!

D.O.athlon and EWF (Easier With Friends)

I can't believe an entire year has passed so quickly.  It seems like just yesterday that I was trying to pull myself together enough from a back injury to do a duathlon with my husband in September 2007.     That was a great day and event - I was able to finish and neither of us were last.

Fast forward to this year's D.O.athlon duathlon.   Same distances (5K run, 20K bike, 5K run), but new location in Walnut Woods Park in Des Moines.   And in the course of a year, I found that some things change - like location and being a year older but other things remain entirely too much the same.  I still struggle with my back and the same injury of 12 months ago and I still came to the line wishing I had more time to actually train for these events I sign myself up for.

This race was the last in a series of racing events and the the field was obviously built for competition and speed.  I think if you added up all the athletes in the field, we may have come up with a whopping total fo 15% body fat for the entire group. 

If I went by myself, I would have been a wee bit intimidated.   But I was with friends -  my  husband Jim and Nancy.  And it was alot of fun!  Jim and Nancy made up a team (Team Underdog) and I decided to go it myself.   Nancy and I had the chance to run the first leg of the run together.   It is always nice to run and chat with Nancy - it was like a 5K "warm up".

And then the bike leg.  The #$%$%) bike leg.  I normally enjoy the bike leg and try to go out and ride as hard as I can and cruise.   But today, mother nature had other plans.  The 2 loop bike course was CHALLENGING!  Long, steep uphills follows by very short downhills.  And then to make it more fun, mother nature whipped up some headwind of 20+ mph, and rain.   At one point, I was on a downhill, peddling like a madman and looked down to see I was only squeaking out 12 mph.  What the heck???  On other parts of the bike course the wind was so strong it was hard to stay vertical - it felt like someone was tackling me every few feet.

But thank goodness, the bike was only a 20K and soon I was back in the park running, cheered on by Nancy and exchanging high fives with Jim as we passed on the course.  And for another year, none of us were last!

As I ran along the last leg of the run, I thought about how much fun the race was with friends.  And of course, as we say in our little running group, it's Easier With Friends.

Here's a salute to my running friends and all those running friends that keep us running and running happily!   What would I do without you!

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Open Mic Friday: Meet Coffee Betsy

We invited Betsy Wasser to Open Mic Friday as she's in the first week of tapering for the Quad Cities Marathon on September 28th. 

Known as Coffee Betsy, we love her hilarious wit on her own blog and the encouraging comments she leaves for other blogging runners.  She weaves humor and the brutal realities of running into her posts.

Amy and I have had the pleasure of meeting Betsy at several races. The only thing that exceeds her love for running and coffee are for husband Steve and son Jack.  Her friendliness and enthusiasm are contagious, so we decided you've got to meet her.

It might be fun to check in with her 48 hours before her marathon to see if any of her answers have changed.  But for now, sit back and enjoy reading about Coffee Betsy.   Welcome Betsy!

Tell us about the marathon training program you've used to prepare for this marathon?

I'm using the FIRST program. Running three days a week works out really well for me and my family. It gives me time to train, my husband Steve time to work on a novel he's writing, and both of us time to spend with our three and a half year old son, Jack.

How will this taper be different than other taper plans you've followed?

The mileage is about the same, but this time around, I will still be doing two days a week of speed work—one on the track, one of tempo running.

Besides cutting back on mileage, what else do you do differently during a taper?

I am making an effort to eat healthy foods, both to be good to my body and to keep from gaining any extra weight since I'm not burning as many calories. I also try to get a little more sleep than usual.

So what does a highly caffeinated, low-calorie burning gal look like during a taper?

Tapering is hard for me.  My marathon is coming up fast (September 28), and I can't help but feel stress and anxiety about it.  And the very best way for me to relieve stress and anxiety?  That's right—running.  So, more stress plus less running means I get a little crazy.

Where to you channel all your pent-up energy during your taper?

The good answer would be that I channel that energy into things that I don't have as much time to do during peak training—from weeding my garden to just relaxing with Jack. But the honest answer is that a lot of that pent-up energy goes into obsessively reading books about running, playing with online race calculators, checking up on running blogs, and worrying about whether or not that tinge in my little toe is a race-destroying stress fracture.

What would your family and friends say they notice about you during your taper?

I actually asked my husband this question, and he said that the biggest difference is that I am around a whole lot more and have more energy. This must mean that I am successfully hiding The Crazy from him.

What do you suspect your family and friends are thinking but not saying about you during your taper?

"Can we please talk about something other than running?"

We've all heard about Taper Madness.  What's your mental state during the taper weeks?

I'm thinking about the race from the moment I wake up on the morning—worrying about the weather, checking for phantom injuries, poring over the course map, and wondering if my goals are way too ambitious—or way too easy.  And when I go to sleep at night, I toss and turn for a while, getting in some additional worrying time, before I fall asleep and have nightmares about the race.  Usually by the end, I am self-medicating with a combination of red wine and Tylenol PM.

Best taper advice you've followed?

Get to the starting line uninjured.

What about taper advice you've ignored?

On Saturday, I am going to ignore taper advice and run a 5K race. I should probably just take it easy and make it a fun run, but I suspect that won't happen.

How big of an impact have you found tapering makes on your marathon performance?

Tapering gets me to the starting line rested, uninjured, and chomping at the bit to go out and run. I  think having fresh legs makes a huge difference.

Hardest thing for you during your taper?

Running is my favorite way to relieve stress, so it's hard to be without it.

Any tapering wisdom you'd like to impart?

Talk to other runners. They'll understand what you're going through and will probably help reign you in.

Any quirky running traits?

I am incapable of completing a run—whether it's a race or just an easy training run—without kicking it at the end. No matter how tired I am, I will pick up the pace to finish fast.

Non-running and non-blogging interests?

I spend a lot of time editing and writing for www.realitynewsonline.com, a website devoted to my guilty pleasure of reality TV.  I also love going to the movies, reading, having lightsaber battles with my son, and making amazing desserts.

Running hero?

My high school cross country coach, Jeff Quick. He taught me a lot about running and really helped me be stronger, both mentally and physically.

Greatest running moment?

I am proud of both the varsity letter that I first earned in cross country as a high school sophomore and of finishing my first marathon.  Both of them represent a tremendous amount of hard work.

Most embarrassing running moment?

During the state cross country meet in high school, I saw my mom just ahead of me, brandishing her camera.  I was distracted, tripped over a tree root, went flying through the air, and rolled a few feet on the dirt. My mom missed the whole thing- she hadn't even seen me.

Most interesting non-runner you know

My son Jack. I love seeing the world through his eyes, a world in which everybody is a potential friend, every day is an adventure, and it is completely reasonable to go to the grocery store dressed like Buzz Lightyear.

What's going on in your life outside of running?

When I'm not running, I'm working, doing a detailed analysis of Project Runway, telling my son that it is not a good idea to sleep with his lightsaber, hanging out with my husband, trying to keep my house reasonably clean, and any number of whatnot that keeps me busy and off the streets.

If money could buy you a running dream, what would it be?

Because I have the finest coaching money can buy, I have qualified for, and am running, the Boston Marathon.  My running outfit was custom made for me, a running skirt and singlet designed to mimic Wonder Woman's costume.  My personal pacer George Clooney keeps up a stream of conversation that is so funny and charming that I barely even notice Heartbreak Hill.  Everybody who has ever been mean to me in my entire life is several miles behind me, struggling to keep running, exclaiming all the way, "Betsy is amazing!"  All of my friends and family (that includes you, BRF's) are lined up along side of the road.  The Killers are there to perform my running power song, "All These Things That I've Done" live as I race to the finish.  Someone drapes an American flag over my shoulders, Olympics-style.  Then we shut down the streets of Boston for the biggest party the city has seen since the Red Sox won the World Series.

Favorite running shirt?

I'm going to customize one of my plain shirts to wear in the marathon to say "One Tough Mother" on it.

We can sure understand your choice of shirt.  Thanks, Betsy!

Take It and Run Thursday: Taper Madness

Welcome to Take It and Run Thursday! 

It's our way to bring together the knowledge of all of us ordinary runners.  It's the virtual equivalent to putting our virtual heads together.  Even though many of us aren't elite athletes, coaches or authors, it doesn't mean that we haven't earned a well deserved PhD in running.   Whether you are starting out, have 50 years of running under your belt or somewhere in between - all of us have lessons learned that make us wiser and better runners.  

Today's theme is ....Taper Madness.   So much racing is going on right now!  It is the season for many runners to run the race they have been training for over the summer.  But before the big race you must first survive the taper.   Share your tips for tapering.  How much is enough?  Or not enough?  How do you cope with the dreaded "taper madness"?  Or better yet...how do your friends and family?

Just fill in your name/title of your post and your URL below.

Next weeks theme is .... BYFB.  Bring Your Favorite Blogs.  We love running blogs!  Can't get enough of them!  We would love to know who are some of your favorite running blogs and why.  Share your private and not so private stash and let us know which running bloggers keep you running, laughing, thinking, learning, and reading.

Click here for a link to all the great posts on Taper Madness.

Welcome to Take It and Run Thursday! 

It's our way to bring together the knowledge of all of us ordinary runners.  It's the virtual equivalent to putting our virtual heads together.  Even though many of us aren't elite athletes, coaches or authors, it doesn't mean that we haven't earned a well deserved PhD in running.   Whether you are starting out, have 50 years of running under your belt or somewhere in between - all of us have lessons learned that make us wiser and better runners.  

Today's theme is ....Taper Madness.   So much racing is going on right now!  It is the season for many runners to run the race they have been training for over the summer.  But before the big race you must first survive the taper.   Share your tips for tapering.  How much is enough?  Or not enough?  How do you cope with the dreaded "taper madness"?  Or better yet...how do your friends and family?

Just fill in your name/title of your post and your URL below.

Next weeks theme is .... BYFB.  Bring Your Favorite Blogs.  We love running blogs!  Can't get enough of them!  We would love to know who are some of your favorite running blogs and why.  Share your private and not so private stash and let us know which running bloggers keep you running, laughing, thinking, learning, and reading.

Click here for a link to all the great posts on Taper Madness.

Welcome to Take It and Run Thursday! 

It's our way to bring together the knowledge of all of us ordinary runners.  It's the virtual equivalent to putting our virtual heads together.  Even though many of us aren't elite athletes, coaches or authors, it doesn't mean that we haven't earned a well deserved PhD in running.   Whether you are starting out, have 50 years of running under your belt or somewhere in between - all of us have lessons learned that make us wiser and better runners.  

Today's theme is ....Taper Madness.   So much racing is going on right now!  It is the season for many runners to run the race they have been training for over the summer.  But before the big race you must first survive the taper.   Share your tips for tapering.  How much is enough?  Or not enough?  How do you cope with the dreaded "taper madness"?  Or better yet...how do your friends and family?

Just fill in your name/title of your post and your URL below.

Next weeks theme is .... BYFB.  Bring Your Favorite Blogs.  We love running blogs!  Can't get enough of them!  We would love to know who are some of your favorite running blogs and why.  Share your private and not so private stash and let us know which running bloggers keep you running, laughing, thinking, learning, and reading.

Click here for a link to all the great posts on Taper Madness.

Welcome to Take It and Run Thursday! 

It's our way to bring together the knowledge of all of us ordinary runners.  It's the virtual equivalent to putting our virtual heads together.  Even though many of us aren't elite athletes, coaches or authors, it doesn't mean that we haven't earned a well deserved PhD in running.   Whether you are starting out, have 50 years of running under your belt or somewhere in between - all of us have lessons learned that make us wiser and better runners.  

Today's theme is ....Taper Madness.   So much racing is going on right now!  It is the season for many runners to run the race they have been training for over the summer.  But before the big race you must first survive the taper.   Share your tips for tapering.  How much is enough?  Or not enough?  How do you cope with the dreaded "taper madness"?  Or better yet...how do your friends and family?

Just fill in your name/title of your post and your URL below.

Next weeks theme is .... BYFB.  Bring Your Favorite Blogs.  We love running blogs!  Can't get enough of them!  We would love to know who are some of your favorite running blogs and why.  Share your private and not so private stash and let us know which running bloggers keep you running, laughing, thinking, learning, and reading.

Click here for a link to all the great posts on Taper Madness.

Tapering: The hay's in the barn

The hay's in the barn!

That's Hal Higdon's expression for the time when we "switch over" from training to tapering.  It's his way of saying, That's it, formal marathon training is over; there's no more time to cram in any more.  I agree.  There's no looking back.

I've tapered dumb and I've tapered smart.  And I've learned that all the months and weeks of running behind me are moot in relation to the weeks I've set aside to taper.  At this point I can't get faster, and I can’t increase my endurance.  But I can injured and show up on race day with legs of lead if I don’t put the taper to work for me. The taper is a phenomenon I need to trust and follow to drive the way I perform on race day.

Marathon guru Peter Pfitzinger says, “Despite the benefits, tapering is the most overlooked phase of marathon preparation.”  Tapering is when the running shifts down while the importance of recovering, sleeping, and eating well ramps up.  It's the return on our investment. 

The focus of tapering is on the cumulative recovery and rejuvenation over several weeks, not squeezing in more running.  After all, what’s the point in trying to fit in one more long run or kick-butt speed workout this late in the game?  What's the point in leaving my best running out on my training runs and then have legs of wood on race day?

For this year’s taper for the Chicago Marathon, I’m going a bit unconventional, running only moderate mileage for two days followed by one day rest.  With 10 days left, I’ll rest one day for each day of running.  And run nothing the last three days before the marathon.

To re-use one of my favorite sayings, I'd rather be 10% undertrained than 1% overtrained.

Looking forward to learning everyone's advice, tips, success stories and tapering plans at tomorrow's Take It and Run Thursday.

Run Easy on Flickr by spotmaticfanatic

Symptoms and Treatment of Taper Madness

'Tis the season.  There is a wicked strain of Taper Madness sweeping across the world.  Since fall is the prime racing season for so many runners, you can't trip over your own shadow without falling into a runner with a full case of delirium and the shakes from Taper Madness.

Taper Madness is real.  Don't let your doctor tell you any different. It isn't a figment of your  imagination - it strikes all runners who attempt to take their training down a notch a week or so before the big race.  It is a necessary evil that runners live in order to arrive at the starting line with legs that have a bit more spring in the step instead of feeling beat to hell.   But the contrary nature of the taper is what you gain back in physical rejuvination you lose in mental reasoning capacity.  The term "madness" wasn't happened upon.  It is a full and complete description of the feeling a runner gets as they anxiously await for the race.   Their thoughts race - most times in circles of repetition.  They sense and feel aches and pains of the tiniest amount and then worry them to the greatest extreme.   All their conscious waking moments are consumed with preparing and running their long awaited event.

But there is a bright side to your condition - it is entirely temporary, 100% reversable and completely harmless to your long life.    But the symptoms can be confused with other more serious conditions, such as truly losing your mind, life ending not yet discovered diseases, and obsessive compulsive disorders that need to be treated.

To help you decide if you need to ride it out versus see a specialist, here are some of the common symptoms of Taper Madness:

• Out of Control Phobia of Germs.  You have converted your hydration belt, cell  phone holder, purse or other items on your person into hand santizer and Lysol toting equipment.  You find yourself spraying down desks, keyboards, phones, bathrooms, and even your loved ones to keep them 99.9% germ free.   You easily move out of the way of handshakes and hugs of most people - even the ones you live with now.  Your children and spouse are instructed to stay within arms length and even blowing kisses down wind are prohibited.  Even if you have never been a self proclaimed germ phobe before your taper, you find that your eye sight is accurate enough to now see possible viral and bacterial infection lurking around every public surface.  No infection, flu, or cold will stand between you and the starting line.
• Self Proclaimed Expert Meterologist.  Through your running training, you rarely studied weather except to decide how much sunscreen to wear.  You withstood all temperatures, wind gusts, precipitation - hell even a tornado and hurricane.  But now with weeks to go, you have your email, Twitter, IM and cell phone set up to provide up to the minute reports on the 3, 5, 7, and 14 day forecast for race day.  You have enacted a "no talking" zone during nightly weather and find yourself switching to the Weather Channel ten times a day.  Some runners will even go so far to try to strike up a relationship with the local meterologist to get the inside scoop.  And others will channel ancient forecasting methods to forecast the weather themselves using moon position, clouds and the path of birds.
• You can't get enough of the details.  The race website you glanced at a few times before signing up you now visit regularly in the lsat few weeks.  You have a minute by minute schedule mapped out for the days before the event through the starting gun.  You have studied the maps to figure out bathrooms, parking, meeting spots, and more.  You have doubled checked your confirmation number, hotel reservation, and your bib number.  Every other day of the year you let the little things go but for a few weeks each year, the details are everything.
• You wonder if you are losing your mind.  In the same hour you think to yourself, "I  can!"  "I can't possibly.."  "I will!"   "What the heck was I thinking..." "I can't wait!"  "Am I really ready?" "I am going to rock that race!"  "What if I am last?"  "I can't wait to cross the finish line!"  "What if I don't finish?"   "My training has gone so well."  "I should have pushed harder on the miles in the middle...".    You flip flop between positive energy and mental anguish in the blink of an eye.  Every other month of the year you are a rational, logical human being capable of dealing with complex emotions.  But for these few weeks, you can't seem to get seem to talk sense into yourself.
• You see people talking and hear words, but you really don't care what they are saying.   And that's not like you.  Most times, you try to pay attention in those boring meetings.  You can usually remember what your better half told you last night.  You can even stay lucid in a conversation with your kids about video games and cartoons.  But not during Taper Madness.  Not a chance.  You hear people talking.  You see their lips moving but you can't focus on the message and you really don't care.  During Taper Madness you would you really like to stand up and scream, "Can we talk about what I want to talk about....MY [FILL IN RACE}?!?!?"
• Your race gear achieves high status.  Instead of being throw on the floor, in the laundry or stuffed in a bag, your chosen race gear is clean, folded and perched on a shelf, chair or other place of high honor a few days/weeks before the event.  Family members are instructed not to touch it, move it or refold it.  It has a purpose.
• Excursions require safety reviews.  Someone casually mentions going out for a meal, drink, shopping, whatever, and you do a mental scan of the route, the establishment, and company before deciding if it is worth the risk of a sprained ankle, chance of eating the wrong food, or picking up a stray germ.
• You think about the race - ALOT. When you get up you think about what you will  be doing that time of the day on race day.  When you go for a run you think about what it will be like to start or finish the race.  You have visualized the finish line so many times you have your never-to-be-used finish line speech to perfection.  You have practiced, secretly, the fist pump, jump for joy, double arm  'yahoo!", etc that you will do for the picture that really counts.   And smiles....you know which smile you will try for and at which miles - instead of the death snear - even if that is how you feel.  You think about the race at every meal, walking to your car, brushing your teeth, while watching the news, singing your favorite songs (but with new taper related lyrics)... with every step or breath you take.
• You know you are dying ... or at least facing a race ending injury.  You held off minor and major injuries throughout your training, but now in just a few days you have aches, pains, tweaks, tight spots all in places you haven't before and in ways you haven't experienced before.  You wonder how your body could betray you now!  You spend time on www.webmd.com and www.sportsinjuryclinic.net hoping to find the answer to your mystery illness - only to find that there is nothing that specifically covers what you are experiencing.

If any of these sound like a current symptom you have, congratulations - you have Taper Madness.  There is a wonderful home treatment.

The race.   

Just go with it for a few days.  It will come to a quick end as you cross the starting line.

In the meantime, know there are many runners like you dealing with the same infliction.   If you need a place to vent, talk about your race or absolutely nothing, stop by the Taper Madness forum in the Lounge and talk about what you are thinking about, how you are coping or heck, even about what you really want to talk about ....YOUR RACE!

***If you are wondering, the pictures have nothing to do with running.  They just made me giggle and thought they would bring a smile to your face too.

Crazy baby face on Flickr by Christian Metts

Dog picture by Red Star

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FREE STUFF Giveaway: Runolution!

We're thrilled about the continued success of the first several FREE STUFF Giveaways!

Not only are runners winning free stuff, but useful advice keeps pouring in for runners.  You contributed another collection of great ideas on how to celebrate and reward yourself for your running accomplishments.  All your ideas are now compiled in article "Reward Yourself" in the Know-How Section under the Staying Motivated section.

Drumrole please...... The lucky winner of a bottle of delicious Finish Line Wine, customized with her own personal label, is Marathon Maritza.  Congratulations Maritza! 

And a deep word of appreciation to our friend Peter Gower and his running wine experts at Finish Line Wine for their generosity and for all they're doing to help us runners celebrate and commemorate our finish lines.  And hey, keep your wine glass handy.  Finish Line Wine will return again soon to give away more wine packages to the Runners' Lounge community.

Our next FREE STUFF Giveaway Partner: Runolution!

Runolution is the sponsor of our next giveaway and is also a great fit for celebrating running.  The Runolution Cafe provides unique, classy gifts for runners, including picture frames, medallion display cases, greeting cards, blankets, pillows, and of course some great technical running apparel.

Runolution is going to delight several winners by giving away these gift packages:

A pewter picture frame—one for a woman AND one for a man—to display a race or other running picture

A collection of three moisture-wicking running shirts—choose from 5 different designs

• A variety of three moisture-wicking running hats—choose from 6 different designs

BTW, don't limit this post to yourself.  Runolution is exactly what our friends and family are looking for when shopping for us!  So leak the word about Runolution to someone who might shop for you before or after your next race, around the holidays, when you run that next PR!

Everyone can become eligible to win

Since Runners’ Lounge is dedicated to sharing useful resources, simply contribute advice or a tip to the Giveaway Question. Your advice can be something you have tried, learned along the way, something you have read, a link to a great post (yours or someone else’s), or a link to others’ advice on another running site. 

All Loungers who contribute to the Giveaway Question from September 8 - 20 will be eligible to win these cool prizes.  Runners’ Lounge will select and announce the winner on September 22nd.

This week's Giveaway Question:

What are your tips, tricks, advice for prerace preparation?

Go to the Lounge and leave your tip today in the forum to become eligible!

Even if you don’t win a frame or gear, you will be a winner in the Lounge.  Runners’ Lounge will compile all the responses in a combined article for all Loungers to enjoy.

4:59.95

Congratulations to Reid on

accomplishing his mission

    of a 5 minute mile!

If you are looking for a shot of inspiration and motivation today, stop by his  place and read his race recap and watch the movie created by his wife.

This shot from his sidebar on his blog is a good reminder that great things come to people to just keep trying and stay focused on their goals.

It couldn't have always been easy, and the picture of him coming down the final stretch shows his determination.

But the after picture shows it was all worth it.

  Way To Go Reid!