bike shoes for spin class

I few hundred laps around an indoor track with a couple of current and former spin instructor goddesses prompted this blog entry.

The shoes. It's a world of difference with the shoes. Mountain shoes, using Shimano SPD style clips. Become one with the machine. Push and pull. Article here.

Local bike shops like Healthy Habits good source. Also online Nashbar and Performance Bike.

Make sure you get the clips. Call and ask if you are not sure if the clips come with the shoes. I have had it both ways.

Get shoes with velcro to adjust or sandals if you want to show off your runner blisters on your toes. There are spin class specific bike shoes, which seem to run in the $30-$50+ range. Your mileage may vary. Indoor/outdoor shoes start about $50+.

If you have any chance you might ride outdoors, consider regular mountain bike shoes. Good mid range ones in the $60-$100 range from Shimano, or Pearl Izumi my preference. Avoid road shoes, unless you like walking funny.

Now go find a class. And become a faster runner.

-Larry

I scream, you scream, we all scream for ice cream

I scream, you scream...a 1920's ditty surely on top of your iTunes playlist.

From the archives, going back into an era when the instructions state "crank until stiff, adding ice and salt", the wife's family recipe for home made ice cream. Because runner's need fat and carbs. And it taste's good.

Vanilla Ice Cream
One Gallon
Add fruit or cocoa powder for twist (modern blogger editorial addition)

2 cups sugar
3 eggs
1 qt heavy cream (close friendship with a Jersey cow offers bonus of high butter fat content cream. Holstein will do in a bind.)
2 tablespoons vanilla
whole milk
pinch salt

Mix ingredients in order except milk until creamy, somewhat stiff. (modern mechanical mixing equipment preferred by blogger).
Put in one gal ice cream freezer. Fill to 2-3" below fill line with whole milk.
Mix in brine of salt and ice until ice cream really stiff. Or until motor on 1960's electric freezer begins to make threatening noises.
Freeze and enjoy.

Quality control by wife's 87 yr old grandmother. Roosevelt era recollections included at no additional charge.

-Larry

Exercise in exactly 4 minutes per day!

Last year I participated in one of those "live healthy" fitness programs at work. 100 days, competition based on time. All honor system based. I drew the line at time spent actually in clothes intended to be sweated in, but others had less rigorous definitions. My enthusiasm for the program lagged, so I didn't sign up again this January.

I suspect the thing was mostly a means of selling magazines. The entry fee got me a subscription to "Men's Journal." Not quite Cosmo for guys, but rather fluffy of content.

"12 weeks to your first triathlon!" Um, yep. In weeks 1-3 swim up to 1200 yards. And you must have that $3000 carbon fiber bike, plus the $200 running shoes to shave those seconds. And cook up your victory meal on that $5000 stainless steel stove. I sense a shake out in the publishing industry.

This little lovely product ad has caught my eye once or twice. Link here. It sounds a bit like 'high intensity interval training.' Kinda like a spin class. Go like hell, rest, repeat. Nearly $15,000 (!) for a piece of exercise gear will pay for quite a bit of race entries. And gym memberships, and shoes and bike stuff. Was describing same to some of the lady running friends over the weekend. Maybe I wanna exercise more than 4 minutes a day? Just funny that way.

Looks an awful lot like that sled that the little dog had to pull for the Grinch one Christmas long time ago.

-Larry

IL Marathon Update 2/15/09

Happy day after Valentine's Day.

News from the IL Marathon via Dave's email tree.

If you know anyone who want's to register for any event - do it know.

The events are filling rapidly. See website link at right.
Quote-
As of February 14, we are at 67% of our cap (2000) for the marathon, 63% of our cap (4000) for the half marathon and 63% of our cap (200 teams) for the marathon relay.
Please sign up soon, registration will close as soon as we reach these caps.

Also - the bus will be leaving at 10 am Friday April 10 from the Bettendorf High School parking lot. Cars can be left for overnight parking there. Same place as Green Bay.

Still room on the bus, and ONE only ONE hotel room. Bring a friend or two, let's fill this thing.

T-shirt update coming this week.

-Larry

rockcut trail run series 2/21 and 3/21

Some of us - John and Danelle, Dennis H., Matt M., myself and friend Danelle from Muscatine - maybe others, shout out/comment if not mentioned - are going up to Rockford for the 3rd and 4th of the Rock Cut State Park Trail Run series.
http://www.rockcuttrails.org/

Talking to Dennis Hall who did the 5k and 10k in Dec and Jan during sat long run. He talked of lots of up/down, single track trails, on the order of 100-200 runners.

Details below. All welcome. Moving long run to Sunday, details TBD.

Meet- 8:30 am Sat morn at Home Depot parking lot Davenport
Travel to Rockford. Race at 12 noon.
15k Feb 21, 20k March 21.
$20 cash race day registration.
Lunch after, home late afternoon.

Points scored based on place in all races. Some just in it for fun.
-Larry

how quickly do we lose fitness?

Listening to Steve Runner tonight while I am supposed to be working. Obviously work requires breaks, hence blogging.

An interesting piece of trivia from Jeff Galloway's "Book on Running."

When we need to take time off from training due to injury, illness or life, what is conventional wisdom on how quickly we lose fitness and conditioning? According to Galloway-

1-5 days off - 1% loss
7 days off - 10% loss
14 days off - 35% loss
21 days off - 60% loss
28 days off - 85% loss
more than 35 days off - up to 100% loss

Assume that this means switch from active to sedentary during a time off from training. No source or correction for what happens if we cross train. Does seem to correlate to gains made keeping year round base. Galloway and Steve Runner both recommend taking "more time off than we think we need" from injury.

All the more reason to stay healthy. Such a razor's edge between injury prone and peak performance.

-Larry

Vote for Illinois Marathon T-Shirt Design

It's time for motivation. The February groundhog was nowhere near my dear wife "Dead Eye" and her trusty 22 caliber Remington. So the critter survives to predict additional cold. I say, it need not be so. Think warm thoughts. Help pick out our Illinois Marathon T-shirt design. An original, brought to you by our very own John Kvapil, artist extraordinaire. I am thinking of using a local screen print shop. The tech shirts from Zazzle last year weren't that good of a material. Bring your own shirt or buy one there. Suggestions welcome.

Pick one of the logos you like best below, and place your vote in the poll at right.

-Larry

PS - Sorry Iowa alums and fans. There ain't no University of Iowa or Iowa State or UNI Marathon. Humor the old master's runner about his alma mater.

Illinois Marathon Update 2/1/09

Update to marathon bus trip list at right. Made some room assignments, based on what we know, what we hope works. Let us know if you don't like your roomies! Spouses excluded, please.

There are two rooms left. Our break even point on the bus trip is 31, and we are at 28 by last count. If you know a few more that would like to come, we still have room. Relay, 5k, half and full marathon all open. Email from Dave coming soon for all signed up.

-Larry

Featured Runner - Danelle Kvapil

My first memory of Danelle comes from a Bix at 6 training run, pushing up Brady St. hill. I am not sure which of us was breathing harder on that humid day. Yesterday she ran 20 miles, and came out looking like she hadn't run a block. I asked her a while back to tell us her running story. In her own words.

My first road race was the Wilton Eager Beaver one mile run when I was in fourth grade. After years of watching the high school track teams use our city block as a temporary track, it was finally my turn. This wasn’t an ordinary ‘Mother may I’ request that had been granted. Instead I had passed my father’s test, which was to run behind him as he rode my mother’s bicycle through town.

In junior high when I was finally old enough to sign up for track, I was a little disappointed to find out that the 1500 meter was the longest event and didn’t understand why the coach placed a distance girl like me in the 400 meter at a meet. Being a snotty kid, I ran that 400 M very slowly. I was pretty excited to learn about High School cross country and the two miles that the girls ran. When the gun went off at my first race, I had no idea what two miles would feel like or how to pace, I just went. I placed at my first three races and brought home medals to sew onto my letter jacket. When spring came, it was time to add the 3000 meter to running resume. I was regularly lapped at meets. At that point my dad asked my why I ran if I didn’t win. I said because I can run. By my senior year I couldn’t stomach the thought of running more laps on the track and didn’t join the team that year. In four years of practicing I never learned the importance of speed work or the value of pacing.

I ran my first 5K while in college at Iowa State University. It was the SCAVMA scamper hosted by the veterinary school. Down the streets of Ames I went trailing people and theirs pets including a woman carrying her ferret in a purse. Occasionally John and I trained together for local 5K races including the Midnight Madness in Ames and the Lincoln Bridge run in our hometown of Tama/Toledo. Those 5Ks were so tough that we couldn’t imagine wanting to run 10Ks. When I was a senior I signed up to run the homecoming torch relay and the only requirement was to run 12 miles in 24 hours. During that run I met my first marathoner. She made the miles look so easy. Since I hadn’t trained well, I was so stiff and sore the next day that I skipped all my classes.

After getting married, running took a hiatus. Not until the winter of 2005 did I try again. I had been strength training regularly, but at nearly 200 pounds I needed serious cardio. I ran at home in the basement on the treadmill until it gave out. That forced me outside and led me to join the Women’s 101 Bix training. There I met Tina and Brenda and completed my first Bix. By the next spring, I was ready to try a half marathon and John and I joined the Distance Classic training group. At the final practice run I met Super Dave and the rest is history.

For a long while running wasn’t fun, it was just plain hard. I don’t recall when it all changed, but finding training partners and this big running family has made all the difference.


Keep it up Danelle. Always good to run with you.

-Larry