Chip'n'Dale Runner: Go Nuts!

Augmentin is a very powerful antibiotic – kills bacteria AND your stomach at the same time. Spent Monday night in urgent care for some infected bug bites, and come to find out I’ve got a sinus infection on top of it. Needless to say, this week has been nothing but stomach upset after stomach upset… not enough probiotics in the world to help. But thankfully, I’m finally feeling better so should be able to start running instead of all walking.

Nutribullet – Sweet deal at Kohl’s – 30% off + $10 Back

Last night, I caved in and bought a Nutribullet blender. It’s supposed to be able to make fruit/vegetable smoothies by breaking down ingredients and unlocking nutrients. I’ve heard enough about it, and figured now is as good a time as any to try something healthier.Not sure how spinach and kale and other assorted vegetables will work in liquid form, but hopefully I can find something that is at least palatable.

I will report back on progress after I attempt a smoothie tomorrow morning for breakfast.

The last two days, I headed out at night for a 2.5 mile run. Friday night wasn’t too bad, but then yesterday, I wasn’t feeling it. My goal was to try and run on “tired legs” without having to run longer distances. This morning, I ran the “Pancreatic Cancer Walk” at the Lehigh Parkway in Allentown, PA. It was sponsored by the Lustgarten Foundation, and is a great cause to help support research and a cure for pancreatic cancer. Having lost an aunt recently and a grandfather many years ago to this disease, it’s something that’s too close to home. My parents and sister did the walk, which was a roughly 3.5 mile loop (technically a double-loop, as some could only walk half of it).

I opted to run this one, as did a few others. Surprisingly, even with hitting the big walker pack on my second loop, I ended up running fairly consistent 10:27 average pace miles throughout. My final tally was 3.84 miles in 40:07. If I only did a 5K, I would have finished in roughly 31:30 or better. I’m still in shock at how fast I ran that, but it felt good and I felt good (even though it was nearly 90% humidity outside). Sometimes running for a cause is a good motivator!

Headed up to Boston today for the MIS IT GRC conference… this is my 3rd time at this conference, and I’ve been invited to speak all 3 years. The first year was right near Disney World, which was a nice benefit… last year and this year, Boston’s Back Bay is the location. I switched running shoes to Brooks Adrenaline GTS 14’s and figured where better to break them in then running around the St. Charles River. 5.3 miles later, I came back to the hotel, lifted weights, did some stretching, and then went for dinner. I’m fully expected to be completely sore tomorrow morning – memo to self, don’t break in shoes with a 5 mile run.

The scenery alone is awesome up here. Add to that the multitude of runners, walkers, and just generally friendly people, and the time went fast. Now hoping the Eagles finish off the Colts for Monday Night Football!

Finally got around to finishing the first part of what is turning into a LONG runDisney Dumbo Double Dare Recap. Here’s the first part! I do have one request – if you enjoy reading the recap, leave a comment. Let me know what you liked or didn’t like about the recap, the race, or the weekend. Thanks in advance!

One week from today, I’ll (hopefully) complete the runDisney Dumbo Double Dare in Anaheim, California. The Lehigh Valley Zoo 10K was supposed to be a tune-up race last weekend… little did I know how bad my quads would hurt. It wasn’t until Thursday that I could walk without aches. Anyway, the Lehigh Valley International Airport held the 2014 Lehigh Valley Airshow today. We were planning to go yesterday, but a combination of cool weather and some rain changed our plans.

The weather for the air show was gorgeous. The performance lasted nearly 4 hours, with a number of aerobatic teams, a wingwalker/biplane combination, and my favorite demonstration – the Sea Harrier. This thing can come to a complete stop and hover in mid-air, in addition to doing vertical takeoffs and landings. An amazing and expensive plane to maintain, but what a sight to see (and to hear – the noise from the engines was deafening). The best part was laying on the grass right near the runway, with an up close view of the action. Numerous food vendors, static airplane displays, and a bunch of other activities rounded out a really nice day. Add to that the two free tickets we got, and the show was a great way to end the summer. Unfortunately, while my head did not get sunburned, my face turned a nice bright red. Hoping this heals fast, and I don’t have any other issues before my trip to the West Coast.

After the kids were in bed,  I headed out for a short 2 mile loop to loosen up, and try out Toker Engineering Salt Stick Caps. Essentially it’s a capsule with buffered electrolytes that’s supposed to aid in preventing heat sickness and cramping. Honestly, I felt pretty good through both of the miles, stopping for only very short walk breaks. I’m hoping I can continue that trend next week at Disneyland!