Bus Tales - oooeeeooo!

No, not as rad as Duck Tales, but close. Last night Linz, Matt and I made our way to the Castro for dinner at Zach's (Linzy's and my old roommate). We walked / bussed / and metro'd to get to the Castro - a true adventure for me (and honestly, I would've rather walked the whole way).

On the bus ride back we enjoyed a real ... treat. We were on one of the long San Francisco buses - you know, the one with the elbow in it? With no seats and limited standing room we got stuck in the elbow. One stop after we boarded a walking bar got on - I mean really, this guy wreaked of shots / beers / you name it. He too made his way to the elbow where he perched against the hard pole on the side (you'll know what I mean next time you take an elbow bus). Standing there, the bar man started to wiggle his bum a little - odd - then, at every turn he'd shout "weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!" Apparently bar bum man liked the elbow.

I must admit, trying to balance as far away from bar bum wee man was quite a workout - I wound up contorting myself into a figure 8 and leaning way off to the side. A nice stretch, actually.

Lululemon / PacWest Fun Run Day!

Another Monday, another run day. As if working off the frolics (yes, I said frolic) of the weekend weren't reason enough to run, the Lululemon/PacWest fun runs are now going weekly and are a great chance to meet new people and, more importantly, hang out with yours truly. If you're in the city tonight would love to see you at Lulu for the weekly Fun Run.

Details:

Where: Lululemon on Union St.

When: 6:30pm

How far: How far do you want to go?

Why: Do you really need a reason to run?

Hope to see you there!

Saddle Run

A perfect day in the city for a perfect run! Today I enjoyed the "Saddle Run" - here's the course:

• Start at the Warming Hut at Chrissy Field
• Up to the Golden Gate bridge and over
• Up into the Marin Headlands to the Saddle
• Back down

The bridge was crowded with tourists, but not too terrible. All in all, gorgeous run!

Early morning running in San Francisco

Today Linzy, Brett, and I made it out for a brisk (and I mean brisk in the OMG friggin cold way) run at 6am. When my alarm first went off at 5:45 I thought I was dreaming - that is until Matt nudged me practically pushing me out of bed to turn off the cricket sounds (yes, I wake up to cricket sounds).

We met in front of Aquatic park and set out from there. It's amazing - San Francisco is like a different city in the morning. In the Bay were two bobbing blue lights - turns out it was two people swimming laps. Nuts. As we made our way up to Ft. Mason we saw a hoard of red flashing lights flashing towards us - some training group with 30+ people were running by and each runner had a light strapped to their chest (the reindeer of runners). Weaving down to Marina Green we came across more groups doing lunges, squats, running sprints, and more. Mind you, it was pitch black still so I'm thinking these were fitness freaks/runners - they may indeed have been homeless trying to get warm, but let's stick with the runner concept.

"Normal" San Francisco presented itself at 8am when I was walking to work - buses were packed, people in suits were speed walking fervently trying to finish a cig, shoe shiners were selling shinings, and the bike crew were filling every coffee shop. Walking home from work yet another city emerged - this one presented packed bars (it is Thursday after all), the same suits puffing new cigs, and a new crew of worker outers.

Breaking in my UA Running Shoes

I am loving my new Under Armour running shoes. I wore them to walk to and from work today (opted out on the run and did Bar Method instead - I swear my butt is an inch higher) and they're so comfortable! Typically when I walk my feet point out like a duck - not cool - but the support in the UA running shoes really helps.

On the UA note, I'm so excited because as a Captain for PacWest, I get to be an Under Armour "Ambassador" - this means I get to test the clothes on runs (oh happy day), and provide feedback. In fact, the entire PacWest Captain and Coach team are Ambassadors - rad!

PacWest just kicked off 2009 with a great lineup so the timing on the UA shoes and gear couldn't be better. Now, on top of the running, biking, tri, and BootCamp training programs, PacWest is offering an Elite Triathalon Team (I hope to qualify someday), yoga for runners (I'm telling you, yoga and running go hand in hand), and training programs around a ton of cool races. If you've been waiting for the New Year to get in gear, PacWest is offering a ton of easy (well, easy to show up, tough but rewarding to sweat through) ways.

I'll tell ya, the more I run, the happier I am. The more I run the more I get into the running community in San Francisco which I must admit is my favorite "community" around.

Running support - nope, not a bra

Lately I've been trying to improve my time - end goal, Boston (although I do have some time here). The funny thing is I've been doing this by lowering miles and upping cross training including biking and yoga; both, I have found, help tremendously but are incredibly hard! My favorite yoga for now is Hatha - moving yoga - I'm loving the Rodney Yee DVD series. I'm also a big fan of the "Hot Yoga" at Crunch - it's not as hot as Bikram, but the increased heat does make me a bit more flexible.

Yoga Journal published a good article on the benefits of yoga for runners:

Although yoga and running lie on opposite ends of the exercise spectrum, the two need not be mutually exclusive.

By Baron Baptiste and Kathleen Finn Mendola

During the course of an average mile run, your foot will strike the ground 1,000 times. The force of impact on each foot is about three to four times your weight. It's not surprising, then, to hear runners complain of bad backs and knees, tight hamstrings, and sore feet.

The pain most runners feel is not from the running in and of itself, but from imbalances that running causes and exacerbates. If you bring your body into balance through the practice of yoga, you can run long and hard for years to come. Although yoga and running lie on opposite ends of the exercise spectrum, the two need not be mutually exclusive. In fact, running and yoga make a good marriage of strength and flexibility.

Read full article ...

Runner's World offers up a few good pre-run yoga stretches and an easy to follow video.

THE POSE: PIGEON (I love love love this pose)

TARGETS: Lubes leg and hip joints while softening surrounding muscles

THE POSE: FAN WITH BONUS SHOULDER STRETCH

TARGETS: Unties legs and shoulder tension while building core and back strength

THE POSE: LOW LUNGE VARIATION

TARGETS: Lengthens calves and hamstring, stabilizes knees

Read full article and watch video ...

Under Armour Running Gear: the new "it" for training

I just got my first pair of Under Armour running shoes (don't get too excited to shop - they don't really come out until January 31st, 2009) and I'm already hooked.

You probably know of Under Armour as "that company that sells tight clothes." I was already a huge fan of the running tanks because they breath ... OK, they look pretty hot when running, too. This is the first time Under Armour branched into running shoes - UA, welcome!

When I first tried the shoes on I have to admit, I was a bit thrown - I typically hate shoes with the built in sock or sleeve but somehow UA did it right. Actually, I know how - the way the laces are made you can tighten or expand the toe (I have wide feet so I "let it all out.")

Welcome Under Armour to my Boston Marathon training wardrobe - glad to have you on board!