So today’s the perfect day to write this as I’m currently trying to rest up what I think is a slight groin pull. Advil seems to have taken care of most of the ache, so I think I’ll try to give it a good go out there again tomorrow, after about 4 days of mainly rest. It’s not too bad of a pain and it goes away when I run, but I figure it’s best to try and get rid of this one month before the half marathon, rather than overtraining on it and making it worse.

PROGRESS

My longest run to date was last Friday at 9.5 miles. Feeling pretty good about this, as I still have one more month to add those last 4 miles. The goal is starting to feel attainable, though the heat is not helping me in getting in my runs. I love hot weather, so it’s odd for me to complain about it, but just having slightly cooler mornings would help. Or some clouds. Butttt, I don’t want to ruin it for everyone else, so I hope the weather keeps up! It’s better than the cold weather, for sure.

I’ve also managed to chop about a minute and half per mile off my average pace. It’s still a slower pace of only 10.5 -11 minute miles, but I seem to be able to keep it up for long distances and it’s a major improvement for me, so I’ll take it! Just had to focus on consciously running faster and taking my stride from heel-toe to striking on the balls of my feet for better propulsion.

GEAR

Here’s a short list/review of some of the stuff I’m currently using to aid my running:

UNDER ARMOUR COMPRESSION TANK – Pretty happy with this, it definitely wicks sweat well without showing it. It also seems to keep fairly cool on hot days and doesn’t seem to chafe my arms on long runs. Also, I recently discovered that it has a zippered pocket large enough to hold my iPhone.

MIZUNO WAVE INSPIRE 6 SHOES – Just picked these up about a week and half ago and I’m finding them to be at least as nice as my old Mizunos (that turned out to be a size too small, due to foot swelling during distance runs). They’re very meshy, so your feet stay quite cool while you run, and also very light. They’re also built for people who slightly over-pronate so they offer good stability. I use them in conjunction with Dr. Scholl’s inserts for knee pain.

NIKE AERO SPORT HEADPHONES – Was looking for some headphones that looped over the ear, but weren’t earbuds, so these were really the only option. The sound isn’t that great but earbuds always fall out of my ears and I have an insane fear of getting earaches and infections, so having something block my ear canals from the wind/elements seems like a good thing. The padding is also rubberized, so it’s easy to clean and doesn’t get too sweaty. It also comes with a cordkeeper clip-on, which works alright.

iPHONE + RUNKEEPER PRO – I can’t say enough good things about this little app for the iPhone. It keeps track of runs (and other types of exercise that you can enter manually) beautifully and you can get lots of stats on their easy-to-use website. I used to use TrailGuru and I have to say, it was garbage compared to this. The free version is awesome, but if you’re a moderately serious runner, I’d recommend ponying up the $10 to get the audio cues and support the developers. I’ve had a couple issues here and there with the tracking, but I believe it has something to do with the iPhone’s GPS, rather than the app, and the errors are few and far between. Two thumbs up.

ARMPOCKET – I’m still on the fence about this one. I tried it out last week when I got it and it chafed the hell out of my arm. It may be that I just had it on too tight. Haven’t used it since as it’s been so warm out that I really don’t want to have anything on my arms, if possible.

GLUCOSOMINE/CHONDROITIN – Just started taking this supplement today, so I can’t comment on its efficacy, however it’s supposed to improve/ease joint pain, so I guess it’s worth a shot. The pills are huge and gross tasting, probably because they contain things like “parts of crab exoskeleton”, but not so bad that I won’t try and finish the bottle. They say results come after a month or so, but I’m mostly just taking them for preventative purposes, since they don’t seem to be harmful.

Other than some of the things I’ve mentioned above, I feel like things are going pretty well. I’ve also been reading some books on running- Running for Peak Performance and Running Well - that I’ve found pretty helpful. I’m sure this post was only interesting to runners, but I thought I’d put it out there, since sometimes I’m looking for inspiration in other people’s progress.

GOAL #1 – RUN A HALF MARATHON

I’ve always been interested in running a marathon, but the sheer length seemed too daunting to me. And the possible damage to joints and muscles makes it a little less attractive to me at this point. However, before the whole appendix issue, I was running a solid 4.5 miles a day, which while it’s not much compared to the 13.1 mile distance of a half marathon, was a good start for distance running, I think.

I’ve caved and bought myself a treadmill, so I’ve already been starting to run again. Once I get back from my vacation at the end of March, I plan to start using the Runner’s World training guide to dictate my runs and hopefully increase my speed a bit. Right now, I’m just focusing on being able to run a steady pace for a good length of time, since it’s been so long.

My friends and I are training for the half of The Manitoba Marathon. It being in June should give us a lot of time to work on it. My goal is not only to finish but to have a fairly respectable time (basically, no walking), so I can keep up with my longer-legged friends.

GOAL #2 – LEARN SCREEN PRINTING TECHNIQUES

Yes, courtesy of the lovely Nik, the much coveted Yudu is now mine. Now I just need to clear out the “spare-spare room” and learn how to use it. This may take some time, due to the amount of work that room needs, but it will get done.

GOAL #3 – MAKE AND SELL MY OWN PRODUCTS

Admittedly, this ties in with Goal #2, since I’ll mostly be producing prints and possibly cloth goods (t-shirts, tea towels, aprons, etc.) with the Yudu. But it’s a goal of mine to be selling my own merchandise. I love working with Cardstore and iStockphoto, as well as the independents that carry products with my illustrations, but I’d like to be able to conceive of and finish something that’s 100% Sam. And obviously, I’d also like to hang onto 100% of the profits.

Well, I have more minor goals to add to these, but let’s not go nuts here. These are the ones I feel require the most focus and foresight, so I’ll try to commit to these. Would love to know what other people have planned for 2010!