Dough!

Wednesday:

Time: 35:07 - Distance: 2.85 miles - Avg Pace: 12:17/mi.

Calories: 332
Soundtrack: Avril Lavigne
Thursday:

Time: 35:08 - Distance: 2.8 miles - Avg Pace: 12:32/mi.

Calories: 326
Soundtrack: Mindless Eating

It's far later than I should be up, and so I'll be quick. I wrecked my lower back rolling out croissant dough on Tuesday, and so I made Tuesday a rest day, uncertain as to whether I'd be able to pick up the lost walk later in the week. Got up early on Wednesday, determined that I was able to stand, and walked off into the sunrise, holding in my abs the whole way in order to protect my back. That worked out okay, although I was a mess the rest of the day. Aleve and a nap in the evening made a huge difference, and now I'm feeling pretty good. Just took a walk that ended after midnight--my latest walk, the day after my earliest. I'm going to try and not do that again...unless I'm in Scandinavia in July. The new audio book is great; more on that another time.

Silly Thoughts

Picture later; I'm e-mailing this one in. So I'm in bread-baking school right now, and we work in teams here to get our various doughs and other tasks done. My partner this week is a guy named Joe with a pretty wacky sense of humor. I was telling him a few minutes ago about doing the marathon with a charity team, and he theorized how funny it would be to compete for a charity that isn't actually a charity. "Like the phone company?" I suggested. "Exactly," he said.

Fundraiser: The Details Are Set

Saturday, January 19, 2008
Brit-Tastic Fundraiser Party and Silent Auction
All proceeds go to Sense - National Deafblind and Rubella Association
7:00pm
446 3rd St #1, Brooklyn, NY

Admission is £5 per person (about $10).
Click here and make a £5 pledge to get your ticket.

Auction catalog is online here.

Got something you'd like to donate to the auction or connections to someone who might?
E-mail me here.

Not a Vampire

Time: 35.05 - Distance: 2.9 miles - Avg Pace: 12:04/mi.

Calories: 338
Soundtrack: Animal, Vegetable, Miracle

I did it! Got out and walked before dark! The advantage to this is the warmer temps--even took my fleece off partway through--and more people around, if you like that sort of thing. The disadvantage is that there are more people around, a lot of them in cars, and so I can't always cross a street when I get to the corner. This sometimes means crossing back and forth in the direction that's permitted by the light until my way is clear in the other direction, and that just looks silly. Sure, I could pause the workout on the Nike+, but it stops the flow of things. Today I tried to trot across the street shortly before a car was coming and got a window rolled down and something yelled at me. I think I like the catcalls better, but it's a close contest.

Southbridge, Massachusetts

Time: 30.04 - Distance: 2.5 miles - Avg Pace: 11:59/mi.

Calories: 292 - Shins: Barely Even Noticed 'Em
Soundtrack: Animal, Vegetable, Miracle

Yup, this is about what the landscape looked like on my walk last night. Booooring! But at least it ended up being safe. You never know when you're the only one on the street in a strange, quiet town. But it turned out to be fine, and I dare say I was among the only people to duck out of the post-wedding festivities for a workout before returning to the convivial fried food fest that was the evening hours. Blech. And yet...yum. Since it's still daylight back here in Brooklyn, I'm going to try and catch some rays and get out for my 35 minutes before the early nightfall of late November. More in a bit.

Turkey Sandwiches, Turkey Soup, Turkey Casserole...

Time: 45:05 - Distance: 3.82 miles - Avg Pace: 11:47/mi.

Calories: 445 - Shins: Better in the Second Half
Soundtrack: Silence and Dad

Well, well, well...my dad may think he walks much more slowly than I do, but this morning, we both had our fastest walk ever. As a result of this and his other recent training (and maybe, just maybe, the travel involved), he's decided to participate in the London Marathon as well! Hooray! He still has to get a definite spot on a charity team, but he's got past volunteer connections to Amnesty International, and so that seems like a good bet. Will keep you posted.

This morning's outing was chilly, but by about halfway through, I was comfortable in most every way. Decided to do my long walk this week today with Dad, rather than tomorrow in who-knows-where, Massachusetts, where we'll be for a wedding. Of course, "long" isn't all that long yet, but it's longer, nonetheless.

Welcome aboard, Papa Bear!

Gobble

Time: 30:05 - Distance: 2.45 miles - Avg Pace: 12:14/mi.

Calories: 286 - Shins: Haven't Fallen Off Yet
Soundtrack: Animal, Vegetable, Miracle

Happy Thanksgiving! Above are the stats from yesterday's walk. I switched around my rest days this week, making Tuesday one of them, so that my dad and I can walk together tomorrow morning. Last night's outing was pleasant--temps have been unseasonably warm the last couple of days (who ever heard of a 63º Brooklyn Thanksgiving?)--and although my pace dipped at the end, I managed to keep up a pretty good clip overall. Still strengthening the shins. There are some shin-specific stretches in The Complete Guide to Marathon Walking, and so I'm giving those a look. I've also just begun to read the section on marathon nutrition, which will hopefully be of some use. South Beach-style diets have been successful for me in the past, but eliminating carbs for a period of time seems antithetical to working out, to say nothing of the fact that I am in school to learn to bake bread. I'll see what Dave McGovern (author of The Complete Guide) has to say on the subject. Enjoy your turkey!