A Mixed Bag

So we’re still in February and you are dreading another run on the treadmill? It’s part of a common collection of wintertime blues. If you are finding it difficult to remain motivated at the gym while Old Man Winter flexes his muscles, the time is right to mix up your training. My normal training this time of year usually consists of watching ESPN on the treadmill while feeling like a hamster stuck in its exercise wheel. To beat the monotony of running, I’ve found that cross training has a wide range of benefits. I’ll highlight some of the alternatives that I’ve found recently.

Basketball

I used to play hoops all the time in high school and college. Getting back to your adolescent roots certainly is refreshing. Plus being on a team really provides the camaraderie that individual sports just do not provide. I’ve recently found a great group of guys to play with regularly on Friday nights. Now this is my type of Guy’s Night Out! Plus it’s a girlfriend approved activity. Talk about scoring points on and off the court!

Massage

I’ll come out and say it. I just don’t think that most guys get enough massages. There certainly is a stigma that if you are a macho man (Sylvester Stallone) that receiving a massage would make a guy too feminine (Ryan Seacrest.) While I am neither macho nor feminine (Paul Walker), I do believe that balance is the key. I’ve been receiving regular sports massages and I can attest that my running has improved and the chance of injury has decreased. If you’re an athlete, then you really can’t expect more from lying around for an hour or so.

Yoga

I’ve done yoga a handful of times before, but most recently I tried 90 minutes of hot yoga. What an experience! I found the heat to be tolerable and actually quite invigorating in the middle of winter. Sometimes a really good sweat can feel oh so good! But here’s a tip for the guys, don’t try to compete with the women in the classes. You are most likely going to lose and lose badly. This may be the one sport/exercise where guys need to feel comfortable taking a back seat. Does anybody remember Bobby Riggs vs. Billie Jean King? I don’t but I Googled it.

Vegetable Medley

Do you remember those terrible vegetable medleys that you were coerced into eating as a kid? While those left a bad taste in your mouth, I think that if you give some sort of exercise alternatives a serious try, it will much more palatable. The winter season won’t seem so long and your body will thank you when spring finally does arrive!

-RJ Lott

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They Invented Cars

People are mysterious creatures. Supposedly, men are from Mars and women are from Venus. It doesn’t depend where you are from; one thing is for certain, exercise is essential for every body (everybody). Of all the workouts available to humans, I prefer to run. You know, of the feet to pavement variety. Here are my top ten reasons why I choose to run:

10. Running is inexpensive. Most of the time, all that I need are a pair of shoes and shorts and a shirt. This allows me to write and not bounce, all of the checks to my exes. They live in Texas. Yee-haw!

9. If I choose to go all DB Cooper sometime in the future, I’ll be in tip top shape. I want to be prepared when I am on the lam. I hear that the arms of the law are long but I’d prefer to not find out.

8. I know the layout of my neighborhood better than anybody else. It’s truly amazing what you can find/see while running. It’s nearly impossible to see all the details while driving through residential neighborhoods at 30mph.

7. I’m trying to make chicken legs sexy. I feel like this revolution has quite the trip ahead of itself. How am I doing so far? BTW, do you ever notice that distance runners have proportionally larger heads? Maybe I am from Mars!

6. Running gives me a little caloric leeway. Hey, I like to eat. My number one food vice? Red licorice, hands down. I have the unfortunate ability to eat it by the pound and not notice.

5. I get to be alone. Don’t get me wrong, I am a super social guy. Running lets me think or lets my mind be free. Long runs are cheaper than therapy, so I’ve heard.

4. It gives me an excuse to have way too many shoes. As an overly macho guy, I need to have reasons to have a dozen plus pairs of shoes piled in my closet. Just don’t let the guys know, my street cred is at risk.

3. You ran how far today?” I continually amaze friends and family at distances covered while running. They’ll say that I don’t need to run so many miles. “They invented cars for that.”

2. I get a valid excuse to travel. I’ve raced in Seattle, Portland, Eugene, Sacramento, Long Beach, San Diego and Phoenix. Running will allow me to chill by the pool in Phoenix come January. Ah the perks!

1. Someday, my future children will think that I am a rock star. Pheidippides, Jesse Owens, Steve Prefontaine, Josh Cox and RJ Lott. We are all running legends.

-RJ Lott

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Motivational Moment

 

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Wine, Women and Song

Whoa there Don Quixote! This post isn’t about what you think it’s about, right? Confused? Just have your cousin beep my beeper and I’ll find a pay phone and get right back to him.

The time in our lives is very important. We’ve only got so much of it, so we’d better be using it wisely. If time were money, as some say that it is, training for endurance sports would cost us all a fortune. We’ve got to make sacrifices with our commitments to become the best that we can possibly be. Sure, we’re all busy with family, work and socializing. There are more commitments in our lives than there are Kardashian sisters. For me, this involves reducing the countless hours of wine, women and song.

Humans, by nature are social creatures. Just ask Mark Zuckerberg. We like to get together and tell important stories (jokes) that others claim to not enjoy but yet they want to hear more of. Did you hear about the bear that walked into a bar??? Humans require interaction with others. Happy hour really wasn’t invented to save us cash on our indiscretions. It was created so that we could validate our good times.

If you want to finally get to Boston or even just compete in your local 5K for the first time, you are going to have to make some sacrifices. You and Don Julio will have to be seeing less of each other. Training for marathons or triathlons can eat up a huge amount of time in our lives. Weekly long runs can easily exceed a couple of hours in which we are inaccessible.  You’ve got to tell your friends, family and significant others that you have not been abducted by ALF. If you are poised to become what your daydreams produce, you’ll need to make sacrifices.

I am of the breed that it’s difficult to say no to a social invite. For instance, the college football season is just around the corner. College football is in my past. It’s in my blood. My grandmother once asked if Oregon Duck football was my favorite television “show.” Umm, yes, yes it is. I don’t know if I can turn down a guest appearance at a football game party/tailgate/discussion. This is positioned directly opposite any marathon training. Especially if chips and dip are involved.

If you want marathon smiles, you’ve got to put in the miles. There really is no way around it. This isn’t the sixth grade; you can’t trade a test answer for a cookie. Put the time in at the gym or on those backcountry roads and your race experiences will be greatly improved. Just make sure that your football buddies or grandmother knows that you still exist.

by RJ Lott

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Jimmy or Warren?

So...I have this new friend. His name is RJ and with 17 marathons, one ultra-marathon and "a dozen or so" triathalons under his belt, he knows a thing or two about running. Oh, and he's pretty funny.(And I get to post his wit and wisdom from time to time:))

I am frequently asked why I run so much. Do you want the short answer? Running is a buffet. And twenty bucks says that I already know what you are thinking. “What does a sneeze guard have to do with aerobic exercise?” Well, nothing. Absolutely nothing. But a buffet is similar to running in the sense that you can have whatever you want. Do you want an outdoor adventure? Do you want to catch up on your favorite “Real Housewives” cast? Or maybe you are just out to stretch Fido. You can indeed have whatever you want with running. It is a buffet.

When I run, I often do not like repetitions. I am not one to fancy the treadmill, unless there is snow on the ground, and then it’s ESPNEWS on rinse and repeat. The great outdoors is the ultimate place to run for me. It’s not labor intensive if you are enjoying your time. I challenge you to run on a street that you’ve routinely driven down in your car. Perhaps the speed limit is 50 or just 25, but either way, I absolutely guarantee you that you’ll see something that you would have missed in your horseless carriage. Perhaps it’s the cute old guy tending to his garden or the cute little lab puppy chasing butterflies. The cuteness factor of the built environment exponentially increases the slower you travel. How much cuteness to what to see today? It’s a buffet; you can have whatever you want.

I once had this hellish chemistry class in college. In the building where we did our experiments, there was a sign that read: “You can’t have a laboratory without the labor.” Ugh. Unfortunately, for that semester of frustration, the quote was correct. In running, the key is to eliminate the disappointments and sorrow. If you are new to running, make it fun and beneficial. If you are a running veteran, still keep it lighthearted. We aren’t running to put bread on the table; you enjoy you. You can always mix in speed work with long runs and then sprinkle it with cross training. The key to any foodservice industry is to get you to come back. I want you to return to this buffet and frequently.

However, there is always one caveat to the buffet. If you eat too much rice pudding too fast, you’ll get sick. You must always listen to your body. I’ve fallen victim to the perils of the buffet. Crazy ideas of piggybacking marathons in the past have left me with Achilles tendinitis and stress fractures in my feet. Injuries will absolutely put the “labor” back in “laboratories.” The key to enjoying yourself at a buffet is to take your time; there will always be another clean plate to use. This is no different than in running. There is always tomorrow, take it easy and enjoy.

-RJ Lott Pin It