One Down Without A Frown

Who doesn't love a good rhyming title? I am a big big fan. What else am I fan of? Koala bear fights, yes (YouTube that!). King Cakes, yes. The movie Taken, yes. I also love me some marathon training! I completed week one this afternoon, and considering I have been under the weather, I came out strong all week. I love having something specific and big to work towards because I have added motivation on a daily basis. Now I am not just running, I am running for a reason. My mileage this week hasn't been amazing, but it wasn't supposed to be. I did some cross training and extra miles here and there, but I do wish I didn't have to travel to Cleveland again on Friday because I would have liked one more day at the gym. I will just have to make up for it next week.

Since my miles were down, I have had some extra time to kill. Here is one of my recent exploits:


Yeah, I am super good at Angry Birds, and I am not sorry about it. I don't really want to say how much time I have spent on this, and my other most recent addiction, Temple Run 2 - are you kidding?! So addicting.


Basically, I am a waste of space over long weekends, but at least I still got out for my miles. I also blew my diet out of the water, but that is what happens when you are around non-runners all the time. I need to work on the whole will-power thing.

I also need to work on explaining/helping others by talking about my weight-lifting. I usually just say what I worked on, and I don't go into detail. This coming week I promise I will go into my workouts with a teaching mindset and then report back to you. I think my work at the gym is going to give me a huge edge come the spring. This coming week I am going to really hit my chest and back because I am really starting to like how it looks and feels. I am also going to destroy my core in a good way: stay tuned.

Finally, I also want to feature some of my followers in the coming days/weeks. I want to pose a few questions to ponder, and then you can email me what you thought of. From there, I may take your responses and throw them right here to help others. I am also going to answer these questions, so it will really be helpful I think. Here you go:

What is the most important lesson you have learned since first becoming a runner and what is the biggest newbie mistake you made?

What is your primary motivation/inspiration for your healthy lifestyle? Have you always been this way or did you have to make a drastic change?

What do you think you most need to work on with your running or fitness?

What kinds of issues do you come across with non-runners? Do you have a lot of non-runners in your life and how do they take your habit?

Would you say running and fitness defines you? If not, how big of a role does it play? Can you be too into running?

If I have more ideas, I will throw them up, but you can email me at mrfrancko@gmail.com. I am looking forward to hearing from you. I won't hesitate to link you up and shout you out! I love promoting fellow bloggers.

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Cross Train Like A Boss

So far so good when it comes to my first week of marathon training. I mean, starting the week off with a rest day was nice, and it made me feel like this:


It also wasn't bad going into yesterday with only a 3 mile run on the calendar. I out some effort into it to make myself feel better, and I also walked 2 miles later on. In between, I cross trained like a boss, hitting the weights with some ferocity. I love working my chest and back, and I need that area aesthetically more than most things. I also got some core work in with some weights, machines and planks. I want to cross train is as much if my free time, away from running, as I can. I also want to use my new running form, even in my Brooks, as much as possible, so I did my entire run that way. I definitely made sure to wear my compression sleeves!


I am not sure what the overall "coolness" factor, or lack thereof, there is with that look, but I am pretty lame as it is. Oh, and I don't run in those shoes, don't worry - those are just a knee injury waiting to happen!

Today was a "rest" day, but I still got weights in to keep the cross training alive. I worked on the sides of of core, obliques, arms and shoulders. I always try to keep my workouts varied, but I always focus on certain muscle groups (chest), and within that, I try to pair up those groups with similar but opposite functionality (biceps with triceps, pectorals with lats).

I feel bad this week, despite my marathon excitement because I miss putting up more miles for the Chilly Challenge. I even let Amy know that I wouldn't be holding my end, so hopefully the rest of #teamescapades will hold me up! Unfortunately team giraffe put the hurt on us early this week, going from 100 behind to nearly 500 miles ahead - whaaaaat?! Good thing I love the people on both sides of this epic conflict. Again, sorry team! I will be coming back up soon! I just want to keep my legs fresh and healthy.

Speaking of love for my fellow runners, someone tweeted this gem today, and I had to steal it! I really need to start high fiving fellow runners because I would be juiced if someone did this to me.


Stay frosty out there folks! Keep those feet moving, and it will be spring soon enough!

Do you wave to or high five other runners?

How are your miles? Are you training?

What cross training do you do while training? How often?

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A Real Rest Day

Temperatures here in southwest Ohio have returned to their normal frigid state today, just in time for my 3 mile training run tomorrow, and I am mildly okay with that. Don't get me wrong, I love me some warm weather in January, but it is also a bit of a tease. I need to just get out there and have to work for every mile in the cold, and then I will get used to it. If it gets warm, it is awfully hard to get used to anything!

Obviously I will talk more about my training later this week, but here is my schedule going forward in week 1 of my 16 week cycle:


I am not too intimidated by much that is to come aside from the cold and the impending long runs. The farthest I have ever gone is 18 miles, so 20 will be a whole new area for me. Luckily, it should be warming up a bit at that point. Other than that, I already do intervals, speed drills, and other assorted training-type runs. I am very excited to be guided through the process, and then be able to discuss it with all of you. I can't wait to see what kinds of things work for me, and what kinds of things I will change in order to suit my own tastes. I am also looking forward to turning quite a few of those rest days into weight-heavy cross-training workouts. I plan on having my whole body be prepared for the rigors of 26.2 miles. Finally, I am looking forward to incorporating barefoot running into my training to increase my foot, ankle, knee and calve strength.

Today though, I am going to do next to nothing. I wrapped up my pre-training training with 102.94 total miles during the first two weeks of the #chillychallenge - I wanted to make sure that I was entering training with a killer mentality, and a no quit attitude. I also wanted to tell my body that marathon training is just one step in a much longer journey in my running career. Some people train for a marathon and then they move on with life, and I intend to do the opposite. Rather, I want this marathon to be the first of many, and I want to be able to go even farther and accomplish more things on my "impossible list." If I can come away from the training and the race stronger and healthy, I will have the confidence to work towards becoming an iron man; I just need to take that first step.

A note on my dietary exploration: chia seeds are going well! I have used them in my morning oatmeal, and I tried them in my yogurt for lunch today. I thought the added texture would throw me off, but it really wasn't a big deal, and it didn't ruin or alter the taste. These seem to be a super easy way to incorporate some seriously bad ass nutrients into my diet. I put about half a tablespoon into each thing, and the serving size is one tablespoon. I think more than that in a little bowl of oatmeal or a cup of yogurt would be too much.
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Form Fitting And Some Diet Schtuff

Much like the compression clothes that we squeeze into on a daily basis, our running form needs to be just as form fitting. Now that I have confused myself with my own metaphor, I will simply say that our running form is part of who we are. To be honest, when I started running, I had no idea that there was a right or wrong way to run; I simply thought that if you stretched regularly, improved slowly and ate right, you wouldn't get injured - yeah right!

So, if our form is part of us, what if that form is also wrong? Turns out, that was the case for me, and my joints started to feel it. Now, I have to change my own natural stride for the all-around natural stride. This explains my shift to barefoot running, and my obsession with tweaking my form. This brings me to my next step, which may involve a book I finally got my hands on: Chi Running - A Natural Approach To Effortless, Injury-Free Running by Danny Dreyer. I had heard about this book, and I understood the basic premise: run with a meditative approach, run with better form, be relaxed and live the run by using your core more.


I have only just opened the book, but I am already impressed with how much it makes sense, and how much overlapping it has with the principles discussed in Born To Run. Essentially, the more I love running, and the more I know about the "art" of the sport, the healthier I will be in the long run. This is all going to come together in the end for me, but for now I am just excited to enter training with so many concepts and skills to work on and experiment with. Dreyer was all about figuring out the mechanics of his own body in order to get the most out of it, and I have that same kind of mentality. Stayed tuned for more!


I also wanted to discuss some dietary things I am doing moving forward into next week. The first is the use of chia seeds in the things I eat. This morning I put half a serving of them in my oatmeal to try it out, and essentially it tasted the same; I have no problem with that because I am still getting the benefits. If you don't know about this new phenomenon, then let me enlighten you with what I know: chia seeds are a super food, much like avocado. The sees are fill of things like omega-3 and they can be out into all different kinds of food, or used to make different things as the main ingredient. I've heard of these seeds on blogs, and they are mentioned, along with quinoa, as a great food for runners in Born To Run. I am going to use these sparingly, as they are pretty expensive, and I had to get them from Trader Joe's, which isn't right down the street. Still, I think oatmeal and my lunch yogurt will be my primary places to add them.

While at Joe's, I also picked up some great looking organic broccoli because it has some great benefits as well, not the least of which is being a anti-inflammatory. I wanted to avoid this scene at my local Kroger:


Yeah, way to suck Kroger. Who needs to eat healthy anyway?

This is by no means a food blog, but I am looking forward to experimenting with some new things and telling you about it.

As for the Chilly Challenge, I am still trying to pull my weight. Today I did a total of 8.45 miles, 5 of which were on the road in my Fivefingers. Yesterday I did 4 in my Fivefingers. Total for the week, so far, I am at 42.67 miles, and I feel good. I gotta say, my calves are finally starting to come around, and they are recovering much faster. Hopefully I can put up a 50 spot this week. Go team Escapades!

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Chilly Challenge Update And The Calm Before The Storm

Howdy my fellow asphalt-addicted lunatics! I figured I would use the greeting of the south in honor of one of my favorite fellow bloggers, Missy, over at Southern Girl Running. Missy is doing the Chilly Challenge with me, and she has become one of my primary motivators, and I just wanted to thank her for that. In fact, I have met a bunch of great people through Twitter, and I am having a great time. I still recommend anyone to sign up and do it; it literally takes two seconds to put your name and handle on a spreadsheet.

As for me, I feel good about my overall contributions so far. I have put up a grand total, in one and a half weeks, of 71.77 total miles, 19.52 of which are from this week. Today I went out an increased my distance in the Vibrams to 3.25 miles! I had a blast out there, especially because the weather was unflippinbelievable! I was out there in a short sleeve tech-shirt and running pants - amazing! My feet stayed warm, and I am super happy with how my calves feel. I wore my compression sleeves on my calves, and I really think that helped. I also followed the run up with a trip to the gym where I put up an additional 6.42 miles on the elliptical. I think the added distance on the elliptical really helped keep my calves loose, so they feel great right now. Don't ask me why I didn't get a even 10 miles today because I don't know; I think I just lost track of mileage - woops.


I am really excited to move forward with the challenge, and I am meeting incredible new runners and bloggers everyday! I am also looking forward to logging some solid marathon training miles next week! This week is weird because I am caught between two two: my normal flexible routine and my future scripted routine. Both concepts will be in play next week because I am going to keep lifting and cross training, but I am excited to have a proven set of goals and methods at my disposal. I like knowing that what I am about to embark upon will genuinely help me run my first marathon and run it well!

Barefoot/Vibrams update: I really love those little fingered torture devices! My calves are sore, my feet hurts, and my form is still in transition, but I really love the feeling I get when I run in them. I am also confident that the transition will get easier with time, and that my experience in minimal shoes will help me. I have done some running in my Brooks, and I already notice a difference in my technique and form. This is a part of my journey that I am looking forward to; I just wish everyday was as warm as today!

Site Update: I may not have updated the blog with posts in a few days, but I did update the "my story" page, so you can read a little about me (I don't know why you would, but who doesn't love options?). Additionally, I updated my future races with a few (there will be far more as more races start coming around in March and April (I need to find a 10k for March! Any ideas?). I am slowly trying to make this blog a little more professional and less unseemly. Thanks for hanging in there!

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Some Reviews, An Update, Looking Towards The Pig

Good afternoon my fellow runners psychopaths. As another week comes to an end, I wanted to create a summation of my last week of freedom. Tomorrow it will be back to the every day grind of creating tomorrow's leaders. I have enjoyed the last week because it has given me an opportunity to rest AND get back to my fitness routine. I actually hit this week pretty hard, both because I wanted to help in the chilly challenge, and because I wanted to start working off those holiday calories as fast as possible. Beyond all that I did some reading and watched some movies.


A few days ago I finally finished reading Born To Run by Christopher McDougall, and I am just now getting around to writing about it. To be honest, I have been reading this for months because I only have so much time in a day to do that sort of thing. When I read, I need to just be reading, and I rarely have time to myself where I am not being interrupted. Luckily, I had time in the car during holiday travels, and I gotta say, I can see why this is one of the most highly recommended running books out there. I would say that the best thing I can say about the book is to simply look at my new passion for barefoot running; my new quest is has been greatly influenced by McDougall because the book makes such a great case for it. The book contains a central story about a race, which I won't spoil, but it weaves in medical and training advice based on facts, research, first hand accounts, trials and the authors own experiences with running. The book essentially explains how to run and stay healthy doing it. I could never read a book just about facts and research, but with the central story, I found myself ale to get through the whole thing. I recommend this book, as most people do, but I would say you should definitely do so if you are thinking of going minimal or barefoot in the future.


Now I have moved on to Runner's World's Marathon training book. I am not reading this cover to cover because I am not a total newbie runner. Additionally, I know exactly what information I need right now because I am gearing up for the official start of my training cycle, which is a week from tomorrow. I will still be able to come to you with a review, but it won't happen until after I run the marathon. I want to see how well this training works compared to what I was already doing. I am already surprised by how many rest days are included. I have only given myself one rest day for the majority of my training, but the book does say that I can include cross-training - I think that will happen because 3 rest days will make me restless. I am super excited to get started!

I am getting extra geared up thanks to the chilly challenge. You can find a link to this on my previous post, but team Escapades continues to hold a leads over those dastardly Giraffes (sorry readers who are Giraffes, I still love you). So far this week I have put up 46.05 total miles towards the cause. This is a combination of outdoor and elliptical running. I think I am going to go outside and give myself an even 50 miles, but I need a rest from the gym. I feel good about my contribution for the week! Yesterday was a little rough, and my legs are somewhat tired; that is when you know it is working! Keep up the good work team!


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Fivefingers, A Return, And A New Year

Today I returned whole-heatedly to training. The Flying Pig is officially in my sights. Additionally, I have a half-marathon in April to gear me up. I plan on slowly filling up my weekends throughout the spring, but those will be my two big races.

Workout: elliptical - 65 min., 11.3 miles/ strength train - 3 min. plank, 15 minutes core, 30 minutes chest/back

I made sure to start strong for two reasons; first, I wanted to come back like I hadn't stopped, and second, I wanted to put up some numbers for the chilly challenge. This is a challenge put on by two members of the blogging community, and each member has a respective team. I chose Team Escapades, with Amy C, who is a great blogger and great runner. I recommend you all go and sign up on the spreadsheet linked above. Each week has mileage totals, and you can help your team while possibly winning prizes. Additionally, this is some great motivation heading into two of the toughest months of the year. After signing up, shoot me a tweet (@therunginger) and let me know you are on the team. So far the Escapades are winning!

Beyond the challenge, I also wanted to provide some humorous motivation for my fellow bloggers. These pictures are courtesy of an Adidas ad campaign; I came across them as I was killing time on Stumbleupon. I think they are hilarious. Google them, and you will see a few more.





I felt like the guy in line at the bank today. I had just been at the gym, so I was instinctively flexing my knee out. I hate standing still, so I feel his pain. We runners are truly odd birds!


Finally, I wanted to talk about my first running experiences with my Vibram Fivefingers. I have only put 4.2 miles on these puppies, but I can already tell that my calves are going to hate this whole journey! I have been icing, massaging, and doing everything possible to get my calves to recover faster, but they just get totally worked by these shoes. The best part: I love every second of it! Sure, after two miles my feet are frozen, but those two miles are some of the best I have felt. The whole experience is like making your feet come alive. The Vibrams make you do things your body has trained itself against for years, and that is when you know you are doing the right thing. Again, I am only 4.2 miles in (took a calves rest day today), but I know this is going to be fun. I will report more as time goes on.





Did everyone have a good New Years? I spent mine at Oakley Square in Cincinnati. I love the feel of the area, though it might be a bit too hipster for me to actually live there. The problem arose every time we needed a cab. We didn't get back to our hotel until 3:30am, but at least one of my good friends lives right by the square, so we had some where to kill time. I think this picture of my buddy and me explains how the night went. I don't even know what kind of a grin that was.


How is your new year's training going so far? Are you trying anything new?

What are you training for?

What are you using for motivation?

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