Runner/Athlete?

Are you a runner?  Athlete?  Social bug?  Then you have to check out The DailyMile.  This is the best site packed with encouraging people doing the exact same thing as you.  You may be struggling with your workout, no motivation to get out there and put in a mile or 2, but when you start talking with the people on this site, it changes your world!

I've been a member since the end of last year, so just short time.  I was looking for a site that would help me track my milage and workouts.  A friend recommended this site and I've been hooked since.  I didn't put myself out there right away and only had 2 friends that happen to be coworkers.  Then I posted a message on the forum titled "1 month later" and immediately got 3 responses.  Just a simple post to say I was there, no requests or anything.  Since then I have responded to a number of posts and became friends/motivators with 47 people!  I'm not the most popular, nor the most vocal, but these people are amazing, always there, always supportive, always helpful.  Not a day goes by that I don't look forward to posting my workout/run and checking out what other people are doing, or reading the questions and answers in the forums from what to eat, to how to train for a full marathon.

This is a great resource and should be a stopping point and bookmark for all browsers that are active.  It's your chance to join a family that is there for you and will help you through the tough spots.

New VFF's!

So I got my new pair of VFF TrekSports on Friday and used them on my runs in Annapolis over the the weekend. All I can say is, loved'em! Put a little over 9 miles on them. I started out with a pair of KSO's a year ago and really enjoy running and working out in them. I did some more research and ordered TrekSports for trekking, traveling and working out, and Komodo Sports for running. I plan on using my KSO's for water sports now.  Komodo sports should be here toward the end of the month as retailers get them in stock. Highly recommend checking out a pair for whatever your sport is.  

10k Steps a day

So I had this assignment for my health class that we had to wear a pedometer to see how many steps we take a day over 3 days.  I didn't know if I would do 5k a day, let alone 10k a day.  I thought I would be closer to or over 10k on the days that I run before work.  I didn't wear the pedometer on my runs so maybe I'll check that out in the next week or so, but for 3 days:

Day 1: 6545
Day 2: 7314
Day 3: 3873

I wore the pedometer from 6AM to 6PM so my numbers may be a little higher if I were to put it on from the time I got up till the time I went to sleep.  It was an interesting assignment to see how many steps I took in a day.  


Where are you on the scale of 0 to 10k?

Barefoot running

I'm avid about outdoors and activity so it may be no surprise one of the sites that I like to check out is Outside online and just today I came across an article on their site titled "The 8 Essentials of Barefoot Running".  This was interesting to me since I have a pair of VFF KSO's and looking at the Komodo Sport and TrekSport.  It has some good tips and techniques for transitioning from traditional running to barefoot running.

This has been something that I've been interested in since I got my first pair last year.  I started off using them for running, working out and also for water sports.  This peaked my interest in using them more often and looking at some of the other styles.  So here I am a year later and about to venture in to using them more.  I've been looking at more Injinji socks to wear with them, I have two pairs right now, a white pair and a black pair, the black pair is my cold weather wool pair.

So we'll see where this takes me, I'm going to try and keep this more up to date with what's going on and experiences with them rather than waiting another year.

Android Honeycomb

So I just watched a video on the Endgadget website of the Google Android event and I must say, I'll have to look at the pricing for the Motorola Xoom.  The features and functionality of this system are pretty cool. Check it out.

Vibram Five Fingers Update

At one point I had a blog, don't remember where it was that I made a post about getting my first pari of VFF for running, working out and just generally wearing them around.

So it's a year later and I'm looking at a couple different pairs of VFF to add to my collection and I thought I would post an update as to what my experience has been with my first pair.

I had a friend of mine mention that I should "take it easy" when I first got them, and she wasn't crazy.  The first time I tried them out I used the treadmill in our basement.  I did a 40 minute run, 10 minutes heel, 10 minutes forefoot, then repeated this and kept the treadmill on or around 4.  After my test I felt great, thought it went well, and was looking forward to my next run.  Needless to say that was not "taking it easy" and I was walking funny for the next couple days.  It didn't take too long and everything was fine and I would use them every time I went for a run.

I also used them for working out and used them when we went to swim in the creek.  I have the KSO's and absolutely love them.  I did get some funny looks in Wegman's when I was waiting in line, but that was fine.

I looking forward to my next pair and plan to wear them as much as I can, I have a distinct feeling that I'll be living in them over the summer.

Garmin Forerunner 305

I had been looking for something to replace my Nike+ for some time now.  I had started running a couple years ago with an iPod Nano and Nike+ and really enjoyed the ability to track progress.  The audio notifications were nice as well.  This time around I wanted/needed something a little more advanced.  My wife and I are fairly active; hiking, camping, horseback riding, running, working out as well as other things so I wanted something that would help to track everything but also help while camping/hiking/horseback riding to get us back to camp or the car.

In comes the Garmin Forerunner 305.  This was recommended by a couple friends runners and riders for the ability to track and get you home.  I ordered one at the beginning of the new year and have only used it for running, walking the dog and one ride, but it is exactly what I was looking for.  I don't get the audio feedback like I had with the Nike+ so that's the only con for me.  The Garmin does beep when you want it to, certain distance, time, etc. but if I'm plugged in to my iPod I feel like there's a chance of missing the little beep.  We'll see how that goes.

I've only touched or used a few of the features on the Garmin and look forward to getting in to some of the more complex features as the warmer weather comes around.  This was a great purchase, and I'm looking at adding the foot pod and pedal to the mix so that I can use it with the treadmill and when we go for a bike ride.