Group showers and other wet and wild adventures

I took Wednesday off from any type of exercise just because. No particular reason, I just didn't get up to go to the gym in the morning and I didn't go to the pool after work. Felt pretty good.

Wednesday night I put put my work clothes and packed my gym bag so I could get out of the house without actually having to wake up and make it to the gym to do my core workout. I woke up this morning on time and went into the closet to get dressed. I made it to the front door and got my keys, wallet, Ipod, and sunglasses and was almost out the door before I realized I didn't have my gym bag. It was still in the closet. I went back and grabbed my gym bag and shuffled out of the house. I got in the truck and made it about a mile down the road before I noticed I didn't have my work clothes. They were still hanging in my closet. So I turned around drove back home to get my clothes (my work has this weird policy about wearing clothes to work! They don't explicitly state that you can't show up naked but I've been warned they frown on it). Got the clothes, got the gym bag, got my head on straight, and I'm ready.

I was really late getting to the gym but I saw my buddy's car in the parking lot so I knew I hadn't missed the whole workout. Only problem was I couldn't find him inside anywhere! I looked all around the gym (yes I looked like a freak wandering around) but couldn't find him. So I decided to just go do some core work on my own. I got a mat out and laid down on it. And looked up at the ceiling, and kept looking at the ceiling, looking, looking, looking, more looking. Ah screw it, I'm going to work! I got up and went into the locker room showered, shaved, got dressed and was heading out the door when I had a frightening thought. "Did I just go to the gym and do nothing but have a group shower with a bunch of other men?" Yes it troubled me all day thank you very much.

I hit the pool again after work and it was WONDERFUL!

I am now able to get totally lost in thought while swimming lap after lap and I don't even partially drown! Big improvement for Willie. I swam another mile tonight and took a rough time check. I did 32 laps in about 40 minutes. That includes the time I spend clinging to the wall at the end of each 4 lap set gasping for air and getting the water out of my goggles. I'm not concerned about time at all but I was hoping that it at least would take me an hour. I did a calorie count on the Internet last night and it said swimming only burns about 450 calories an hour. That means I'm not even burning 500 calories!! It sure as hell feels like I'm burning a ton more calories while swimming than when I'm running. Maybe that calorie calculator didn't take into account my horribly inefficient stroke. I honestly believe that any progress I've made is not because I've gotten better but that the water is just getting out of my way now because it's tired of being beat to a pulp every time Willie hits the pool. Yes, it's true, I put fear into water! Nothing is free from the wrath of Willie.

Oh yea, I also did a flip turn tonight! My first eeeevvvveeeerrrr thank you very much. I actually did a total of 3 but only one of them didn't end with me flying out of the water gasping for air and choking on a gallon of water so the others don't count. Go me.

Thanks for listening

My Emotional RollerCoaster Weekend

What I did on my weekend.

1) I tried running on Friday while on a mega-dose of Ibuprofen. I made it 6 miles but still felt my knee.

2) Because Friday went so well I decided to run with the OKC marathon training group on Saturday. They were only doing 12 miles so I figured what the heck. I mega-dosed on Ibuprofen again. It was an out and back route and I did the "good" thing and turned around early. Turns out it was not early enough. I made it 7 miles before the sharp, real pain hit. OMG! It hurt so bad. I had no choice but to run/walk/limp the last 3 miles.

3) I was actually happy that I had done a long run. Made me feel whole again. Knee pain be damned. In some weird way I needed that long run to get my head on right. After that run I made a decision not to run again for 2 more weeks and I actually was OK with it!

4) All that changed when I woke up Sunday morning. I had the insatiable urge to run just a few miles that morning. I had these wonderful memories of how great it was to run down the middle of Broadway early on Sunday morning when there is no traffic. How quiet and peaceful it seems. So I laced up my shoes and hit the road for an easy 3 mile run. I made it 1 mile. Once again it hurt REALLY bad, I almost couldn't walk home.

5) That bad run out-did all the good, long run vibes and I was in a pissy mood for most of Sunday. Still not convinced that I was unable to run, I went to the gym to see if I could run on a treadmill. They are softer right? I made it 1/4 mile before I stopped almost in tears. Not sure if it was the pain or the absolute frustration I was feeling.

6) Totally disgusted with myself and wanting to seriously punish myself for being injured, I hit the pool. I swam....and swam....and swam...and swam some more. Motivated by shear self-hatred, I wanted it to hurt and hurt bad! Before I knew it I had gone 3/4 of a mile. I figured I had nothing better to do so I did that last 1/4 mile just so I could say I'd swam a full mile. I've never swam that far before. It was also the first time I got lost in my thoughts while swimming. I am usually so wrapped up in watching my swimming form and style that I don't get lost in thought like I do when running. This time I was able to think about all kinds of things which makes the laps go much faster.

8) I have a confession to make. I was so desperate on Sunday that I hit the supplement wall of the drug store. I wanted that 'magic' pill that would make my knee better quickly. I wanted that 'miracle' pill that defies all scientific principles but people are sure works to cure everything. I despise those commercials and I know that all you are really buying is expensive urine but on Sunday I didn't care! I wanted something and I wanted it NOW! I bought some glucosamine and chondroitin supplement that I read about on Runner's World. No clear studies show that these have any impact on joint pain but millions of people swear they do! When desperate, go with the crowds baby! To hell with science! I'm so ashamed of myself. I feel like a huge hypocrite. I'll just add that to the list of my flaws.

7) Still not feeling that I had suffered enough, I decided to begin my morning core workouts again on Monday. I am lucky that I have a friend from work who works out every morning and always ends with a tough core routine. I knew he'd be there on Monday morning so I surprised him. As expected, he killed my stomach and sides so that I had trouble sitting up all day at work.

So that was my weekend. 6 miles on Friday, 10 miles on Saturday, 1 mile run and 1 mile swim on Sunday, and a core workout on Monday morning.

Oklahoma got hit with an ice storm Monday afternoon so they closed the base and I had to come home early. Darn! Then it got worse last night so they kept the base closed today and I had to work from home all day. Darn darn!! Yea, it's a rough job I know.

I worked on my laptop all day which absolutely sucks when dealing with schedules! Dual monitors are a must when looking at Gantt charts! I suppose this is how the cavemen did schedules so I tried to imagine I was "roughing it". Maybe I'll try to do a spreadsheet on that 'paper' stuff tomorrow. I hear they used to use that stuff in the old days.

After a tough day of Predecessors and Start-to-Start's, I had enough and ventured out into the icebox formerly known as Oklahoma. I needed to swim out some more frustrations. I did another mile tonight. 32 freakin' laps of that stupid pool. I can't lift my arms above my head right now but I am feeling like I've almost got all the bad feelings beat out of me. I think I can get through 2 weeks of not running if I keep up the swimming and the core work.

And just to brighten your day there's this


Thanks for listening

I'm going to steal this from Sarah and Jen but.....
Today I love: Hosting a teleconference wearing Spongebob pajamas!

Welcome to the show

Camera opens on a cheering crowd

Oprah walks on stage

"Today on the Oprah show we will be talking to people who live in a state of self deception. People who spend their whole lives living in a false reality that they have created for themselves. People who can time and time again look at a decision, know the good and bad of each option, and yet somehow always pick the bad option."

"How do they justify that?"
"How do they come to these conclusions?"
"How do their brains work?"
"Can they ever fit into normal society?"
"These are the questions we hope to answer on today's show."

Oprah sits

"First up is Willie, Please help me welcome him to the show"

Out walks a confused, bald, elderly man as the crowd lightly applauds

"So, Willie, tell us a little about your problem"

"Um, your producer told me this show was about hard-working people who overcome great odds to accomplish their goals?!"

"Yes our show is about people who live in their own little worlds of self-deception"

"No, you see, they said I could share stories about how I run through injuries and how I never let little problems bother me"

"Yes, exactly, your ability to fool yourself into thinking your actually something special by doing, well, forgive me, but STUPID things"

"Um, that's not exactly how I see what I'm doing"

"Exactly and we want to know how you can think that way, glad you finally get the point here, now tell us a little about your current situation. You're having a problem with your knee?"

"Um, well, aren't you supposed to be nice? I always thought you were nice? You were nice to Tom Cruise and he's a freak??"

"The knee Willie! tell us about the knee"

"Well I'm having this pain in my knee for about 3 weeks now. I don't think it's a big issue, it just hurts when I run. I figured it would go away after awhile but it hasn't. So instead of not running I'm trying to work through it because I've got marathons planned all year and I can't stop my training. You know Tom really is crazy right?"

"So let me get this straight, you're a runner and you're injured?"

"Well yes, but I wouldn't say I'm injured, I just have a minor pain in my knee when I run. It's nothing really."

"I also understand you saw a doctor about this and he said it would take 4 weeks to heal and you shouldn't run while it's healing?"

"No, no, no, he said I COULD run as long as it didn't hurt."

"So does it hurt when you run?"

"Well, yes"

"But you're still running?"

"Well, yes"

"So explain that to me, I don't understand, seems pretty clear to me that you should stop running until it doesn't hurt? What am I missing here?"

"The doctor said I shouldn't run if it hurt. So I'm trying to find a way to run where it doesn't hurt. I'm currently trying to take Ibuprofen to ease the pain when I run. I'm also running slower and trying different ways of wrapping my knee to try and get rid of the pain. It's really not that hard to understand, I'm following my doctors orders. Not like Tom, he really needs a doctor, maybe team of doctor's."

"You really believe that line of crap that you just spouted off to me? You know that's NOT what you're doctor meant right? If it hurts, STOP RUNNING. Period. Don't you think that you'll be hurting your long-term running if you try to run through this? Why would you risk that? It's only 4 weeks? My goodness, I could follow a diet for that long, that's nothing. Don't you think of those things?"

"Of course I do, Oprah, but you're looking at this wrong. I'm not really hurt, it's more of a distraction, and plus, I'm being strong and tough by not giving in to this distraction. It's not going to beat me! I'm tougher than that, I only stop for real injuries."

"And what would a 'real' injury be?"

"Oh, I don't know, loosing a leg maybe, bullet holes, you know, possibly a broken leg but only if it was a real break and not just a small fracture. Things like that would make me consider not running."

"Forgive me for saying this but you sound like a child!! I've interviewed 2 year olds that are more mature than you! You are just an overgrown child who thinks he's unbreakable. Most people grow out of that kind of thinking by the time they hit their twenties, you're almost 40 and you still think like this?? Wow!"

"Tom believes in aliens"

"Do you really think anyone is impressed with you're, so called, toughness? All you're doing is making a fool of yourself and possibly causing more damage to yourself. And for what purpose? You're own distorted vision of yourself as some kind of tough guy? You know that everyone thinks you're a fool right? Not just a fool, but a childish fool, they actually lose respect for you because of this kind of behavior."

"Tom wears tinfoil on his head when no one is looking"

"You are such a child and I feel dumber for having talked to you, I apologize to my audience for this black-hole of intellectual thought I put them through. I thought we might get some insight into someone who has a unique look on life but all-in-all we got a look into an overgrown child who refuses to accept reality and justifies his self destructive behavior by twisting the situation to fit his own idea of reality"

"Wow, I do all that? Check me out! I'm not sure what all that means but it sounds like there's more to me than I thought. Look at me, I'm deep!! Who knew? Take that Tom! You suck, I've got deep shit going on in here, your just a freak."

"Please turn off his mic and go to commercial. NOW!"

Thanks for listening

I ran, I ran, I really really ran

I ran tonight. I just couldn't take it. It hit 80 degrees here in Oklahoma and I just new that the Gods were tell me it was time to run again.

So I strapped on my (new) shoes and headed out for an easy 3-4 mile run. I wanted to talk to my shoe dealer about my knee anyway so I figured I would run there. I could feel my knee about .25 miles into the run. It didn't hurt but it was there. I took it easy holding a 9 minute mile pace and it didn't seem to get any worse. I did notice that it hurt worse on an uphill or a downhill.

I showed my shoe dealer, who is also a foot doctor, where it hurt. He said that it was the Bursa sacks in my knee that were inflamed.

He said I could run as long as it didn't hurt but to avoid hard surfaces. He also said 4-6 weeks before it will heal completely. I've given it 2 already. Those were really good weeks too so I think they count as 2.5 maybe 3. It's quality not quantity that matters right??

So I left the store feeling pretty good. He did say I could run and I may only have a week left to heal completely. I love selective hearing, I'm so good at it.

I made it 3 miles without any significant pain. The course I was running has a significant hill around the 3 mile mark so I decided that was a good time to walk. So I walked. When I got up and down the hill I figured 3 miles was a pretty good distance for my first run in 2 weeks so I continued walking. Normally this would drive me crazy but I was so happy to have just run again that I didn't mind walking the last mile. All I could think was that I had just run 3 miles and I was happy. Really happy.

All that walking gave me a lot of time to think. First I thought about my run tomorrow. I'll get off work early as usual since it's Friday and I can go to LAKE HEFNER and it will be 70-80 again! And I can RUN!! Oh that made me happy, I can't wait for tomorrow. Then I got to thinking about the last time I was really hurt. Specifically I remember how much Ibuprofen I used to take. Then in true Willie form I had a lightbulb go off between my ears. I haven't tried taking massive doses of pain killers for this injury like I did before??!! Back then I could barely walk but if I took the drugs I could not only walk but I could run! Hmmm..... Hmmmm.... Hmmmm... Bad thought go away, bad thoughts go away, bad thoughts go away...... Sure I'll be prolonging the time it takes for this to heal BUT I will be able to run during that prolonged time which, in Willie's world, is soooooooo much better than just waiting out the shorter time. Willie's world is a scary place sometimes. Good thing I'm the only one in there, probably get arrested if anyone else ever got in there.

So my plan is to hit the Ibuprofen tomorrow before my mid-afternoon Hefner run and see how that feels. I will only do 3-4 miles again. This will just be a test to see if I have any pain at all once I'm sufficiently drugged out of my mind. If that works, it's on baby! bring on the long runs and the come-back.

Thanks for listening

What happened to happy Willie????

Workout summary

Monday:
5 minute side planks
120 bicycle crunches
Swam 1/2 mile
Ran ZERO

Tuesday:
Stationary bike 26.5 miles
Swam 1/4 mile
Ran ZERO

Wanna know how I feel about all that? Really? Well have you ever seen one of those small, overgrown ponds that has a nasty film of slime on it? Well you know the stuff at the bottom of that pond that decays and creates that slime? You know the things that died in that pond to make that stuff? Yea, I'm the microbiological virus that killed that thing (ask RBR she knows all about those things, probably has pictures). That's how I feel.

Basically I have a deep, deep self loathing thing going.

Worthless, fat, lazy, grumpy, asshole bastard who's good for nothing and no one. I'm angry at everything and nothing in particular. So much so that I actually sped up when I drove by a cop yesterday just so he would pull me over and I could cuss him up one side and down the other. Just give me a reason buddy and I'll bite your head, or don't give me a reason, it really doesn't matter I'll bite your head off anyway. Ebenezer Scrooge got nothin' on my baby! What a fuckin' amateur.

Yea Willie!

Ok enough of that. Here's a question for all you triathlon people. How do you ride a bike that long and not have a sore butt? Or in my case a sore place where my butt should be. Yes I'm one of those old men who has no butt. My thigh goes right into my back. My belly makes up for it though. I think I got kicked in the butt too hard once and it went through my middle and came out on my belly. Anyway, good lord people, how do you do that? Stupid bike.



Thanks for listening

Me and a soapbox

{Profanity alert}


I'm back from my annual trip to sunny California where I get my once-a-year hit on the old aircraft-maintenance crack pipe.

Did I ever tell you about my love of airplanes? I have spent my entire career in/on/around/under/on-top-of/covered-in airplanes. In my younger days I worked on them, now I just work on the software that goes in them. I always have a desire to get my hands dirty on them again though and once a year I get to do it.

I got the full treatment this time, saw a B-1, B-52, and an F-22 take off. Even heard a sonic boom. I hurt my back crawling around in tight spaces, got my hands dirty changing parts, had the smell of jet fuel for breakfast, and generally wet myself. Yes I was in heaven.

Then I saw that some old boy put an Airbus A320 in the drink out in New York. Everyone walked/swam away. You wanna know why? Because that old boy was an ex Air Force pilot who flew F-4's. He knows how to fly "airplanes", not just the computer-based-overpriced Nintendo games they slap wings on now day's and call airplanes. No, this son of a bitch flew the airplane that proved if you put a big enough engine on it, you can make a brick fly. The kind of airplane that will kill you quickly if you fuck up. The kind of airplane that doesn't "compensate" for pilot mistakes but actually "aggravates" them. This boy knew how to fly.

Yes, this time he was flying one of the most advanced modern airliners in existence today but you know what all those fancy computers become when the fucking engines quick and you got no electrons running through them? Worthless wastes of space, that's what. Without those the only thing the poor bastards in the back got going for them is the matter between the pilots ears and his balls. God help you if he doesn't have any or either. (BTW ladies, men are not the only ones with balls. I've met more than enough women pilots with balls of steel to know better. I just don't know what else to call that quality!)

Pilots fly airplanes, computers only help. Take the pilot out of the cockpit and you can count me out mister. The day I put more trust in a fancy piece of silicon and some geeky software engineer than in a piss-and-vinegar filled crusty old stick and rudder pilot is the day I'll cash in my chips and take a fucking donkey.

He'll never admit it, but I bet this guy actually got a little excited when the engines quit. After years of monotonous computer-based "flying" he actually got to reuse all that shit he learned when he became a pilot. Maybe excited isn't the word, little wet-behind-the-ears pilots get excited, real pilots step up to the situation and become something beyond themselves when the shit hits the fan. Of course they're scared, everyone gets scared, some people just put the fear in a different place and do what needs to be done. This guy was probably just happy that nobody was shooting at him when his engines quit. Hell that's a piece of cake.

Next time you get on an airplane take a look at the pilot. If he's a kid, pray like hell he won't suck his thumb and cry for momma when he gets in trouble. If he's wearing an Air Force, Navy, or Marine's pin on his lapel and he's over the age of 40, sit back and enjoy your flight. Hell get drunk, it will make it that much more fun.

Speaking of praying, I saw an article about this that said something like the passengers prayers were answered when they all survived. The more I thought about it I hope that's not true. I hope those poor bastards didn't pray for themselves. I hope they prayed that their family's and loved ones would be taken care of it they were to die that day. I find it very selfish to ask the creator of the fucking universe to spare my little insignificant life just because I'm scared. If God can find a better way of caring for my family then by all means end my pathetic little existence here on earth. Everyone will be better off if that's true. If, however, God's plan for caring for those more important than me is to have me stick around and care for them, then spare me and I'll keep doing the best I can. I could be just old and crank though.

BTW, I REALLY need to run again soon. The weather in California was amazing and I didn't run a step.






Thanks for listening

I don't belong here

Hi, I'm really a runner, I don't belong in this gym

Hi, I'm a runner,

Hey, I'm a runner so I'm not like you,

Oh I'm sorry, I don't know the rules here at the gym because I'm really a runner and don't go to gyms,

No I don't need help with that, I'm really a runner so I won't be coming here much longer,

I know I've been here everyday since Saturday but I still don't belong here. You see I'm a runner but can't run right now because I'm hurt.

Oh don't get me wrong, it's not that I'm "better" than you, it's just that I'm different. You see, I'm a runner and I don't go to gyms like you do. You come to these places to see and be seen and maybe lift something repeatedly. I go to that place called "outside" and run by myself (yes that means with no one else around) to get away from people for awhile. My goal is to be in motion for hours at a time. I don't do "sets" or "reps", I do miles. I don't rest in between them either. I know, I know, this is hard to understand and I don't expect you to. I just want you to realize that I don't fit in here so please stay away from me. BTW, your lipstick and eyeshadow are smudged so you better go fix it.

Am I being too cruel? Am I stereotyping? Am I just getting old and cranky?

Actually I think I'm just proud of being a runner and want to make sure everyone knows it. I put a lot of my self-identification on my running. It's more than what I do, it's what I am. Maybe I do this because for many years I wasn't a runner and I worked very hard to get to where I am now. When you work that hard at something you want people to recognize it and, if not respect it, at least be aware that it's important to you.

This is not to say that running envelopes my entire world and it's all I do and talk about. I do lots of other things like......, Um, ..... well I sometimes....... Uhhh...... well it's not like I plan my whole week around running, Oh wait, I do kinda do that but a long run must be planned for you know! Sometimes I surf the Internet, OK so usually I'm reading running websites but sometimes I click on non-running sites by mistake so that counts.

My point with all this is only to get it out of my system. I've had all these thoughts lately while I'm walking into the gym and needed to put them down in pixels so they would stop swirling in my head. Now that I've said it, I feel better.

Then there's this just for fun!



Thanks for listening

Free Willie!!

Before you read this please remember that I'm not running OK? Just want to set your expectations.

I'm swimming.
Just keep swimming, just keep swimming, just keep swimming. Hey look, Krill!
Remember Dori?? From Finding Nemo?

Anyway, I'm swimming now since I can't run. I joined a gym again this year since my company pays for it. I didn't really use it last year since I hate treadmills and well, gyms in general. This new gym has a pool though! I like pools. They have water and usually a hot tub. I like hot tubs too.

I have tried to swim in the past. I've actually even done a few sprint triathlons in my time. I like the idea of biking and running in the same race. Swimming? Not so much. I remember finishing the swim next to kids who were getting on bikes with training wheels. They could swim but I kicked their butts on the bike and run!! I just can't swim well. I try, I really do, but I can't breathe under water and I need to breathe a lot. How do you people breathe in the water?? I just can't get the technique. I can't dance the electric slide either so maybe that explains it. Why can't they have a 2-step version of freestyle breathing? I could do that. Or maybe a drunk stagger around the dance floor version? Ok too many dance references I know.

Since my pathetic attempt at running on Saturday, I've hit the gym everyday trying to beat my body down enough to make it think it had run. I did lots of core work and have now swam 3 days in a row. I still suck. It is a GREAT workout though. Inefficient swimming really makes you tired. Did I mention that every treadmill in the place was filled with people running and enjoying themselves? Well they were. Every one of them pointed and laughed at me as I slumped by them on my way to the pool. Why must they rub it in? Stupid knee.

Oh and get this, I'm going to LA on Wednesday! My annual trip out west where the sun shines and they have a path that follows the beach for miles and miles. The place where celebrities jog and wave at other runners. The place where you can run out on a pier and take wonderful pictures on the beach. TOO BAD I WON'T BE RUNNING THIS TIME! Ok, so you know that won't last right? As soon as I get near the beach I will run. How can I not? I know myself too well. I'll run and my knee will hurt and I will add another 2 weeks to my recovery. I suck.

The travel channel had a special on Bar Food last night and they profiled a bar in Santa Monica called "Finn McCools". It looks really cool so I've got to find it and go there this weekend. Maybe if I drink enough Guinness I won't feel my knee!

Thanks for listening

Down and out

Oh what a week.

First let me say {gulp} Congratulations to the {gulp} Florida Liz-- , I mean, Gators. They beat my Sooners and it was a great game to watch. I'm a big enough little boy to stand up and say when I've lost.

My Buckeyes lost too. That was a good game too.

College football is now over and I have nothing to watch on TV.

It's Armageddon week on the Discovery channel and all the shows say that it's all over in 2012. December 21st to be exact. Wonderful, at least I can plan for it.

My knee is really hurt and I can't run.

I went back to work this week.

With all that said, I'm amazingly happy. It could be the thousands of milligrams of Ibuprofen I'm on to help my knee though so I'm just waiting for the fall.

So now some explanations and excuses. You knew it was coming, of course you did.
Hang on a minute, Sugarland is on Palladia singing "Want to"......

Ok, I'm back. Great song. Anyway, I was explaining things right? Right, well as you know, I hurt my knee this week or possibly last week, I'm not sure. I thought it might just have been the cold so I took a couple days off. I ran again on Thursday night and I only made it 2 miles before it started hurting again. I made 4 miles that night but not without limping and a lot of pain. I've diagnosed it as Runner's Knee for sure. I can isolate the spot on my knee cap that hurts so I've iced it a few times and put some Chinese liniment on it. I thought maybe I could run today with the marathon training group. I made it 2 miles and decided that was enough and walked back to the parking lot. In the cold. Alone. Limping. (feeling sorry for me yet?). Frustrated. I'm not the worlds best injured runner. I don't like being injured. I don't like it at all. Not at all. So in true Willie fashion I've given my knee 2 weeks to get better. That's it, no more. If it goes past that I'm replacing the knee. I just can't tolerate laziness from my body parts. They need to know who's in charge.

What that means is that I have to enter injured-runner-mode. I have to lower my caloric intake. I have to find some aerobic activity to replace running that won't hurt my knees. I have to take this opportunity to strengthen my core with Pilates. Oh yea, and I have to be a total wreck mentally, feel like a blimp, and feel "unclean" without my weekly long run.

Unfortunately it also means that I shouldn't/can't run Mardi Gras. I'M SO SORRY! This has nothing to do with the bet I lost I promise you. I will run a marathon in a Florida Liz--, Gator shirt I swear, just not at Mardi Gras. I was really looking forward to that marathon too. Maybe next year.

So Willie is officially a sore loser. Get it, my knee is sore and I lost the bet. Sore loser! I know, I know, I'm sooooo funny.

Thanks for listening

Boomer Sooner

What the H-E-double-hockey-sticks!!!!

Map Pace (min/mile)

Posted from traininglog.roadrunnersports.com

Tonight was a nice easy 4 mile run around the block. Only one problem, it's freakin' cold! I think it was 30 degrees when I started. I felt great for 2 miles then OUCH!

Someone stabbed my left knee with an ice pick! Holy Crap that hurt. Had to stop.

No pain. Walked a little, still no pain.

Ran again, no pain. Yea! It was just a temporary pain, whatever it was grew back quickly.

OUCH! what the crap was that? Had to stop again.

We're walking, we're walking, we're running we're running OUCH, $%^@, Stupid-#(*@ing !@#hole knee!

This must be just because it's cold, right? I decided that I'd stop at my shoe/crack dealer and order a new pair, i.e. another hit, of GTS 8's. This time I want the yellow and black ones so I knew I would have to order them. Surprise! They're 35% off! Yea for me. I thought about ordering 2 pairs until I discovered why they were on sale. Brooks has brought out the GTS 9! Oooooo they are sexy too. May have to do them next so only got 1 pair of the 8's.

Ok back to the #^$%ing knee pain. Doctor FeelGood/shoe/crack dealer confirmed that it was probably the cold weather and that I had aggravated the little sacks behind the knee cap. He told me to keep my leg straight tonight and try not to bend it much. He even offered to give me a knee strap to help get me home and also offered to loan me a coat since I'd have to walk home. This is why I love local shoe stores. Can't get that kind of service on-line!

So I walked it home, actually limped is a better term. It hurt really bad and I was cursing outloud to no one much of the way.

So here I sit with my leg straight getting ready to watch my beloved Buckeyes play the vile Texas (pronounced Tex-ass) longhorns tonight. I know it's a long shot and that the Big Ten is really struggling this year but I just have this feeling that Ohio State is going to pull it out tonight. Jim Tressel is such a wonderful man and deserves to beat the living crap out of those cattle. FEAR THE VEST!!!

Thanks for listening!

2 Runs and a big GULP!

Today was the first day of the OKC Memorial Marathon Training program sponsored by my running club. They were only doing 6 miles but the timing was right and I was able to make it so I figured what the heck. We had 125 people show up!!! Holy Crap! This program started a few years ago with 7 people for the first run. Last year we had a handful for the first few runs and got some bigger groups for the longer runs but nothing like this. 125 people for a 6 mile run. There were many first time marathoners too. That's awesome! Very impressive. It's just too bad that the man who started this group died a month ago and didn't get to see what he started grow to this size. I suppose he's watching somewhere. Thanks Jack.

Today was also the day for a trail run sponsored by Chisholm Dupree who is a bit of a local celebrity since he ran the Badwater ultra-torture race last year. He is such a wonderful person, so soft-spoken and humble, I met him at a party over Christmas and he invited me out for this run. The total run was 50K but you were free to do as much as you liked. My ultra-insane-marathoning buddy was going to do the whole thing since he's training for his first 100 miler in February. I had never done a trail run before so I tried to hang with him for a bit. His advice was to go out easy and then get slow as the race progresses. Like I said, he's in the ultra-marathoning club that sees marathons as "cute", so he has a different run strategy than most of the runners I've met.

I was doing well for about 2.5 miles and then I hit bottom in terms of energy. I took an E-Gel and walked while I waited for it to kick in. It finally did and I was running again. It was a totally different world running on a trail through the woods than it was running on the roads as I'm accustomed. They have things that stick out onto the trail and things that stick up out of the ground! You have to watch out for these because you can get whipped in the face (once) or trip over them (Oh I lost count). There is a reason that society in general went to paving roads instead of leaving them as trails I learned. Trails have there place but running is much harder on them and I'm not sold on them yet. I hit another low-energy period around 4.5 miles so I decided I better turn around and head back. I know when I'm licked and I didn't want to get stuck out in the Oklahoma woods with dueling banjo's playing when I don't have enough energy to fight off "Bubba".

I made it back to the trail head (see I'm using woodsman terms!) and immediately headed to the nearest Starbucks as I'm sure the pioneers did when they settled this great area. I got a total of 8.7 miles on the trails. Add that to the 6 I did this morning and it's not a bad day for Willie but I was hoping to get 20 total. Oh well maybe next week.

Ok now for the big GULP. Texas Tech got stomped last night by Ole Miss. Read that as Big 12 gets it's arse handed to it by the SEC. That's what our newspaper said anyway. They made a big deal about how the Big 12 just doesn't have the defense to stand up against an SEC team. GULP. This is OUR newspaper mind you, THE Oklahoman. GULP. OK so let it be known that I'm not a huge OU fan. I'm not backing down from the bet, not at all, I'm just readjusting my expectations a little. Did I mention that I'm not a big OU fan yet? Go Buckeyes!!! I do REALLY dislike Florida though. So maybe this wasn't the best idea for Willie to make a bet on a team that he only moderately enjoys against a team he absolutely can't stand. Hmmm, maybe too much at stake and not enough to gain?? Oh well, my bet still stands. Texas Tech notwithstanding, OU will tromp Florida and Jen will wear an Oklahoma University feedsack for the Mardi Gras 1/2 marathon.