Before and after - Ciléne!

Here's super runner Cilene before and after a recent 9,36 km run. The second pic was supposed to show the icicles that had formed in her hair during the run.

Before and after - Maja!

Here's Maja before and after her run! Before she says she was: tired & grumpy. After: happy and energized!

She adds "if it's like 5 below (celsius) I treat myself to some hot blueberry soup before I shower". Sounds so good.

Cold weather running

Some of you have asked what I'm wearing to run outside in this weather.

This is what I put on now. I LOVE my new CRAFT BUTTWARMERS!

• running tank with built in bra
• buttwarmers
• socks
• fleecelined tights
• icebreaker merino underlayer
• windbreaker
• hat
• gloves
• kid neckwarmer

Missing in pic: shoes and regular underwear.

And this is what it looked like outside and how I felt (mute if you don't like the sound of a healthy woman panting):

Before and after - Cilla

Before run: Tired next to happy Eva

After - now in the same mood as Eva was in previous pic! Running fills you with toddler-age happiness!

Run to this!

Running music, thanks BRITA Z!

BEfore and after- ÅSA!

I received a mail from Åsa, who said she'd browsed through this blog to get inspired to run. Somehow it worked, cause look at the after picture, with cat!

Running will do this to you!

It was so cold yesterday, I was in no mood to run either but I felt that if I had inspired Åsa else, she could inspire me too! So I went out!

I ran a distance I know is 5 k, my iphone said 2,88 k because it's an apple product, made in california, where they never have to run in weather as freezing as ours!

It was -12 C or 10.4 degree Fahrenheit. Sissies.

Ps. I was wearing too little, my ass and thighs were freezing! let this be a lesson to me! those body parts were so freezing I ran with almost straight legs. Ridiculous.

And it was dark.

After. I look crazy here, mostly because I hated Nike+ for failing me after my heroic burst.

Update

How are you doing out there? Only 3 weeks til Christmas!
This week, aim to run 3 kms without stopping, alternatively run for 21 minutes without stopping. For each workout from now on, add 1 minute of running time so that in 5 workouts from now, you've run 25 minutes continuously. keep doing this until You've run 30 minutes without stopping in time for Christmas.

You can do it now, if you've done your work. If you haven't don't panic.

Then just extend your own deadline til say January? February?
The more you run, the easier it will get and the more you will love it.

The other day I thought to myself:

If what I have to do to stay in shape, sleep better, be happier and have more energy is to spend half an hour moving to music I love a few times a week, is that so bad? NO.

If this perky attitude annoys you - great, the hormones activated by anger - adrenaline etc, is actually not a bad thing when working out.

love
-e

Tip tip

If you're a rookie runner in a cold country, running with an iphone or iPod touch, you might feel the need to remove your gloves to change the music, start, pause or stop a workout. Don't, you need your fingers warm and happy. Instead, use this tip from the arctic region: use the tip of your nose.

Before + after or show me where you run -Emi

Ok hands up people who really felt like going running this cold, gray morning. My hand is now touching the floor. But I put on running gear anyways cause you can't always succumb to your inner lazy child. Here I am pre-run, walking the kids to daycare and school. Vanja took this pic, that's why you can't see her.

What I saw on my run. Beautiful winter landscape.

Ran into my neighbor Matilda.

Kept running.

Back home. Happy, warm, ready to shower. Have never regretted going for a run once it's done.

Now send me your pics! emi@lovegun.net

Before & after or show me where you run

Hi people, blogs with pics are more fun. So starting now, please send me a pic showing hwat it looks like where you run.

Or, if you're brave/ not all that self-conscious, send me before and after pics of yourself from your run. I'll try to post my own pics here tomorrow to lead the way.

send pics to emi@lovegun.net

thanks!

Training Lisa Chong -week starting November 15

This week, get your three workouts in and indulge yourself for doing so great. To my mind, this indulgence should not be food or drink-related as I think it's confusing for the brain to always think of gratification or comfort in terms of food or drink.

I'm sure you know something else that what would feel like an indulgence.

.....

This week, try to run continuously for 2 km. You can do it. Then switch to walking for 1 km, then run 1 km then walk your last 1k=5k. You'll soon be able to run a slow 5 k.

Also, do you have an iPhone? am thinking of setting up a challenge for you!

Training Lisa Chong - the treadmill challenge

Running on the treadmill is boring boring boring. Unless you watch TV or are listening to Lady Gaga and Beyonce singing Telephone and are dance-running and lip synching the words and feel like a million bucks. This can happen, I've experienced it myself.

Here's a way to make it a little little bit more entertaining.

1. Get on the treadmill at a slow pace. Make sure the settings show kms, not miles.

2. Warm up by walking briskly for 2-3 minutes.

3. Now start running SLOWLY at a pace of like 7 (km/h)

4. Now run for a minute at 7, then increase your level by one tenth the next minute, increasing till you get to 8,5 or whatever level is still ok with you but you have to give it some effort. Then go back down again. You do this and you have your 30-minute workout and a slight boredom relief.

I've done it and loved it.

Training Lisa Chong

Lisa, where are you , in relation to the wagon?

Tell me, and I'll tell you a great thing about treadmills.

Other people, are you running/reading or should I quit this?

testing Nike+ GPS

Have an iPhone? Then you can get the Nike+ GPS app for a few bucks. It will tell you your distance and cheer you up and all you people who try to follow this but get confused by the km-thing- you can set your settings to show you how far a km really is!

I say it worked fine and the runs are really easy to sync.

The Nike+ thing really helped me when I started running. By now, I've run and logged more than 1500 kilometers! Perhaps in a year or two, you will have done the same!

A former rookie shares with us

I did this Run with e-rookie thing a while back. Jennifer in Canberra, Australia, was one of the rookies who started out then, and she's still running. Today, I received the pic above from her run yesterday. She wrote: "Your former rookies still like to run..."

I love it!

Training Lisa Chong - sick

Just heard from Lisa:

"i was sick last week and still don't feel good----i feel like i'm so behind now. my best wishes to your other runners---leave me in the dust! it's ok!!"

This brings us to an important point: what to do about running when you're feeling sick? Should you run anyways? Skip it alltogether?

I say, try to go for a walk. It's so easy to fall off the wagon and many of us have a tendency to let even the smallest notion of not 100%-ness be an excuse not to go out an run. Excuse to whom? To ourselves! A common saying is that if your illness is above the neck, go running, below neck, don't. As in: I often go running when I have a slight cold but not when I have a cough.

And 95% of the times I have, I've felt better both during and after the run than before.

If you're a beginner, you might not have it in you to conquer the wall of resistance aided by sickness. Forgive yourself. Then get back on track. All is not lost. Nothing is lost. This is not about losing a few pounds before the holidays, it's about bringing a source of joy and health into your life from now on.

hear that lisa? take a walk and forgive yourself. a slow walk if you're not feeling so great. but fresh air and moderate physical activity, fall colours and time to yourself never killed anyone. the training you've done up til now is never in vain.

love

-e

First kilometer is the hardest

This week, starting today, you will try to run one kilometer without stopping. You might think this is impossible, but before the week is over, before Tuesday November 9th, you will make it.

I promise. Just keep running. Tell yourself it will soon be over. Tell yourself each step makes you stronger.

you can do this.

i know you can.

cause I myself once thought it was impossible.

Little known secret about running: Just like the first million, the first kilometer is the hardest.

Back from New York - report to me please

Lisa? How's your running? Other people?

How are you all doing?

I'm leaving for New York on Sunday and won't be able to post much next week. But stick to the program! Work out for 30 minutes 3 times this week. This time, keep up the 2-miniute miracle and try to squeeze ONE 5 minute stretch of pure running into your half-hour. You can do it. Just slow down the pace. Keep running!

So curious to hear about your progress. Obstacles? SHARE!

How Lisa is dealing with our program!

http://dearhughlaurie.blogspot.com/2010/10/starting-late-in-life.html

Unexpected, running related thoughts from my local post office

"Did you ever see a cheetah warm up?"

Question from Sara

Sara said...

Who is Lisa Chong?? Also, I was wondering what to wear when running in bitter-cold Sweden - How much is sensible to put on??? You (and Lisa Chong) seems to have all the good answers.. therefore I turn to you for some good advice :

Emi says:Well, Lisa is a reader who wants to start running but never gets around to it. We'll have her and who ever else wants to join run 5 km without stopping/switching to walking by Christmas.

Regarding your second question, this is what I had to put on while running in -14 below (celsius). That would be 6.8 ºF if you're into Fahrenheit. But that's kind of my limit. Any colder than that, I'll run on the treadmill.

Training Lisa Chong. part 7

This week, make sure you make it out the door or to the gym 3 times as well. You should work out for 30 minutes. Nothing scary. But this time, run your 2-minute runs as often as you can. Ideal would be 2 minutes run - 2 minute walk, but if that's too much, then settle for 2 minute runs followed by 4 minute walk until your half-hour is up.

Have you decided on your reward yet?

What is it? Share with me!

They kind of look like socks.

No regular shoes allowed. Monkey feet welcome.

Yes it was boring.

My new heroes.

Ran 5 K in my Vibrams, listening to Kanye's perfect-for-running "Flashing Lights". It was an odd feeling running in these. A feeling of "I could get used to this. I should try to get used to this".

A new beginning

Going running with my Vibram Five Fingers for the first time today. Am planning on running 5 k on the treadmill, can anything be more boring. On the upside, I ran 5 k on the treadmill both Sat and Sun so perhaps I'm getting used to it. One can always hope!

Forgot my Nike+ shoes though, so will have to run 5k and have 3 identical runs. But the kms were run so it's not cheating. My goal of 2010 is to get closer to 10 k in 50 mins and to reach my next Nike+ level. Just about 1350 k to go.

Run with me!

New goals

Nike has fucked up this thing and the blog will now be about.... I don't know, perhaps my personal experiences with running.

We'll see. I haven't decided yet. Am still dealing with anger issues towards Nike.

I went running yesterday, on the treadmill. It was so boring. But afterwards, as always, I felt amazing.