Time until marathon starts: 98 days, 19 hours, 25 min., 27 sec.
Miles run since last post: 47.5
Early morning runs since last post: 7
LINCOLN PARK ( 05 July, 2008 ) - While most people stayed in bed and nursed their Fourth of July hangovers this morning, I got up at 5:30 to meet my training group and run 9 miles - officially the farthest distance I’ve ever run at once in my life. This left me with a strong sense of accomplishment until I realized that I will be saying the same thing almost every Saturday from now until showtime.
As I enter week five of my training, I’ve heard a myriad of training tips and tales. Some interesting, some useful, some totally out there. Here are a few things I’ve learned this far:
- Body Glide is the greatest invention ever; Kiehl’s Sun Block is a close second.
- Stride and Orbit brands of chewing gum don’t disintegrate (or lose their flavor) when you chew them for a long period of time.
- The worst part of an early-morning run is getting out of bed.
- There is no traffic anywhere in Lincoln Park - or Lake Shore Dr. - at 5:30AM.
- Where all of the uneven pavement, pot holes and slow (”gawker”) zones are around the Lincoln Park Zoo, Oz Park and the Lakefront Path between Montrose and Chicago Ave.
- The money spent to run with an organized training group is well worth it. Some groups are better than others, though.
- Running without an iPod isn’t painful when you have others running at the same pace as you.
At this time, I ask you - my six loyal readers - what has been your most valuable training tip? (If you’re not a runner, how about with your favorite sport?)
