the compression sock and the jewelry show

Hello World-

Just a short post here to tout these awesome -- new to me -- compression socks. My calves were always so achy, so the running store extraordinaire -- Pacers in Old Town, Alexandria -- sold these to me today. I actually bought three pair because they feel so good! I may wear them all day to embarrass the kids. I may never take them off...

We had our long run Sunday morning in the remnants of Saturday nights deluge. It misted the entire run and even after 16 miles, I still wasn't awake. No mojo there, but got the last long run in before Steamtown with the second half of the run at race pace. No we really start to taper with only 42 miles this week...

Still planning and doing the running thing but got distracted on the fall garden this morning. Also trying to figure out how much longer I'm going to keep my tomatoes in the ground. They are so ugly that it takes every fiber not to rip them out. When I go out there I hope that no new tomatoes are on the vine but they just keep coming. This one plant is 2 feet taller than me, no kidding!

My friend Karen W. approached me with an idea to co-host a jewelry show here at the house and she would donate all the proceeds to RunningBrooke. Thanks Karen! The jewelry is really cute. Here's the link www.stelladot.com I'll let ya'll know when the party is.

Cheers and it is a beautiful day for a run!

RunningBrooke

Really am doin' something...

Really am doin' something is the mantra of the runner who is beginning the taper. After all that hard work and months and months of training it is very hard to sit back and let your body rest and built up for the thing you've been working so hard for. One, you feel lazy and two, you have SO much energy that you can feel the blood pulsing through your body, really...

The above is a picture taken on the outskirts of Santiago, Chile. Love this one. What a beautiful country... I give you this one today because I meant to take the camera to the yoga studio in Georgetown to get a little photo there but I forgot it. Maybe that is a good thing because I don't know how much good karma that would create between my fellow yogis and myself and plus, there is so much sweat going on in there that I probably couldn't see or the camera would fog up. So, the running has been going well with the 800's behind us and our last long tempo too, and only 16 to run on Sunday. The 800's averaged about 3 minutes; I lasted through 8 of them before calling it quits. My legs were still pretty tired from Phili. The animals on the track -- and you know who you are -- cranked out 10. You know I say this because I wish I had been with you :)

Updates:

This planning a marathon a month until I've run all continents, and all 50 states, including the 5 world marathon majors, is hard. I feel that I could have run one in the amount of planning time it has taken me thus far! Still, I'm getting closer but I'm not ready to unveil the upcoming 14 months yet. Patience, fans :)

A big shout-out to my friends, Mark and Lori, and their boss --sorry, I can't remember his name -- over at Local Flavor who let me hand out my information to my fellow Alexandrians at the pick-up location. You can find out all about them and what they do by going to their website: www.FarmBuyersClub.com I talked to lots of fun and enthusiastic people about RunningBrooke and got lots of positive feedback. Also a friendly shout-out to Neel Lassetter, General Manager of The Evening Star Cafe, who without me asking said that we should talk to see how The Evening Star Cafe might help out the RunningBrooke Fund. Yea :)

And finally, I was featured in an article that I wanted to share. Here is the link. Cheers and it was a beautiful day for a run, even in the rain...

RunningBrooke

www.runningbrooke.com

http://givingfullcircle.org/2009/09/22/giving-circle-members-in-motion-meet-brooke-sydnor-curran/

Philadelphia Distance

Hello World!

Love this photo of Sharon and me at the Philadelphia Distance Run!  She placed 6th in her age group with 1:29:19 -- go Sharon -- and I placed 10th in my age group with 1:29:36.  Not bad for a half marathon :)  and good omens for Steamtown.

What a beautiful time we had.  Great weather, great sites, great race.  Will do this one again, for sure.

Cheers and it was a beautiful day for a run -- okay, so not beautiful because the humidity is back in Washington -- but you know what I mean!

RunningBrooke

My legs hurt and I don't think my feet stink :)

Hello World!

I hope there are some Jimmy Buffett fans out there so you don't think I'm totally weird!

A short one today as I have to get the kids up in a few for school -- and I was too tired to post this yesterday -- but the BIG news for me is that I ran a 1:29:and some change at the Philadelphia Distance Run yesterday!  Yea!!  It was the first time in a long while that I've been able to sustain a decent pace.  Now that I think about it, I've never sustained anything that fast -- for me, and I guess it is all relative -- for that long.  I think we averaged (Sharon D.) and I, about a 6:45 pace.  And for 13.1 miles, that is pretty good...

So it will be an easy 8 and 10 miles today and Tuesday before we head back to the track and do some Yasso 800's.  From then on out, it is taper time with our longs runs shortening each week.  I think we are at something like 16 miles on Sunday...   Three weeks to Steamtown and counting!

I'm making a lot of progress with my marathon planning but want to feature that in it's own post so I won't say too much now except that Australia is on the calendar!

This photo has nothing to do with running, obviously, but I thought it was a good one.  This praying mantis has been living on my front porch and hangs out on the window in the afternoon catching the rays.  Just hope it is busy eating the bugs earlier in the day  :)

Cheers and it will be a beautiful day for a run!

RunningBrooke

Let's be friends!

Hello World, and fellow Alexandrians!

Let's be friends!  I keep hearing from people directly, or through mutual friends, that you are reading my blog.  LOVE IT, but would like to know that you've been there.  Leave a comment, become a follower and I'll do the same  :)

Updates:

1. It's officially exercised induced asthma...  by the stress of running hard and by my own internal stressors that I place on myself.  Now how is my type 'A' personality going to deal with that?!
2. Featured in my first article.  See link:
   
   

   act311@magni.icebase.net

   
   
3. Figuring out how I'm going to do 12 marathons a year until I'm done.  I've been on the 50 States Marathon Club website, the Marathon Guide website, Runner's World website and Marathon Tours website.  Can my family stand this craziness?  The thought of trying to do this is invigorating!

Cheers and it is a beautiful day for a run!  Now if I could only figure out why the type style changed...

RunningBrooke

P.S. This photo was taken in Prague in front of the John Lennon memorial wall.  The murals and tributes, some may say graffiti, are beautiful and are on an embassy's compound wall.  Can't remember which embassy but it must bring good Karma  :)

836 miles run and 220 miles to go!

Hello World-

The title says it all!  Since the Easter Island, Chile Marathon on June 8, 2009, I've run 836 miles and have 220 miles to go before making it to the Steamtown, PA marathon on October 12th.  That number surprises me but my running log and calculator says it is so...

So, if I average let's say, 1000 miles per marathon training cycle and I've run for the sake of argument, 3 marathons this year so far, that puts me close to 3000 miles run.  Okay!  Now that is an impressive number.  Might even be impressing myself, and that rarely happens...

The crew is off to Philadelphia this weekend to run the distance run.  Good luck to my fellow track stars and I hope we all show well and run a fast 13.1 miles!  See you at the pasta dinner  :) This is a tune-up or practice race for the marathoners to feel good and iron out any of the training kinks; figure out that the clothes/shoes/nutrition/training are all in alignment and good for the race day.

I'm putting to the very top of my list of things to do:

1. identify and register for the Antarctic Marathon, the Great Wall of China Marathon, the Australia Marathon and an African Marathon.  Any suggestions for that last one?
2. become a member of the 50 State Marathon Club and start chipping away at the states.  I'm thinking about tweaking my goal to run 12 marathons a year until I've completed all continents, all states and all marathon majors -- this last category I'll close out in April with the completion of London!  Anyone want to bet that I can do it or come along?
3. improve the number of posts I make here and spent more time looking at other people's blogs and gathering followers (I hope).

I've been sharing my computer with two of the kids while the family computer has been at the shop.  Needless to say, CAN'T wait until tomorrow when the computer should be back and up and running again.

Did anyone see, race or run through the Parks Half Marathon, DC's Triathlon or the Reston Triathlon yesterday?  What a great day and what a great day for local -- and maybe not local -- athletes...

Cheers and it was a beautiful day for a run!

RunningBrooke

so much to say, so little time

Hello World!

Really so much to say and way to little time to say it....

Updates:

$1,260.00 raised today and $16,000.00 raised so far!!!  Thanks everyone for making Alexandria a better place for  all.  It's going to hard deciding which Alexandria charities to donate to so if anyone has a suggestion or a favorite place, let me know.  I'm thinking about ALIVE, the Alexandria Health Department, SCAN and the Alexandria Seaport Foundation...

I had my first good track workout in 6 weeks on Tuesday.  Yes!  It felt awesome getting some speed in and not gasping for air.  Are the asthma meds working?  Too soon to tell yet but maybe...  I thought they would have an instantaneous effect but maybe it took a week to take hold.

 Above photo was taken on the C & O canal -- what's up with the no water ? -- working on the canal/lock system in Georgetown ? --  it is usually a lot more picturesque than this.  But anyway, the crew met here for our Sunday long run.  Usually love running long but this was painful!  We did an easy 8 up and through Bethesda along the Capital Crescent Trail, over East/West Highway and looped around a neighborhood park before heading back, refueling -- goos and gatorade -- at a pre-planned pit stop at a dry cleaners.  Here is the painful part:  tempo run -- 6:40 min/mi down to 6:25 min/mi miles -- the remaining 6 or so miles back.  I was almost in tears; evil thoughts were going through my head but man was I proud of myself when I came gasping in.  And wasn't it so much fun, the camaraderie of it all, afterward standing around, just talking, afterward.  Perfect.  Painful, but perfect.

A French vendor selling baguettes and other breads at the King Street Farmer's Market wanted to know what I did for exercise when I was there this afternoon.   Me, skinny with the good arms -- sorry to everyone but I inherited the good arm gene -- carrying lots of bags --ordinary tank top on.  He, well you know, French baker dude.  The point to all of this is that he starts to proudly tell me of how he's begun to run -- 2 weeks in a row, now -- his routine is to run for a few minutes, then walk for a few minutes, then run again.  I'm all for it and encouraged him enthusiastically!  I said that I'd check on his progress every time I was at the market.  Ummm... was I too nice?  He gave me my rolls and banquette for free and I felt a bad vibe from the woman behind me...  reading too much into this?...

So that is it for now and here is a 'shout out' to mcmamma.  Your blog is a fun one to read...

Cheers and it is a beautiful day for a run!

RunningBrooke

just a butterfly

Hello World!

Sometimes I have have to talk and think about something else other than running.  I think about running to near obsession, whether I'm running well and that is when I proudly write my times down in my running log and go along with my day in near euphoria or, as it has been in the last 6 weeks, not so well, where I think:  what is wrong with me/my body?  Why can't I keep up.  Am I not trying hard enough, should I be trying harder, should I be doing more?  Why can't I keep the times I was able to hit 2 months ago?  Why can't I breathe?   Etc., etc., etc. 

So, I've just learned that I have asthma.  I thought that I had dodged that bullet.  My father, my brother, my child, all have asthma but not Brooke.  Not Brooke the marathoner.  I learned that I have been working with 20% less oxygen that a woman my age normally works with.  Okay, so I guess that that is good that I learned that there is a reason for my breathing issues and I guess that it good that I'm likely to be able to control these issues but I'm not so happy with all of the meds that are now on my kitchen counter.  I know that some out there are thinking to themselves, this is all that is wrong in your life, Brooke?  And I guess that I could agree with them because in a way they are perfectly right...  This is the worst thing I'm dealing with right now.  But the thing is, when something you love, that your mind and body adores, turns against you and starts to deplete you, what are you supposed to do with that?

This is what I learned:  Work with what you've got on any given day.  Don't compare yourself to others or to past runs.  Run for the beauty of movement and not for the stopwatch.  Listen to yourself.  More is sometimes not better.  Don't over-think things.  Do your best.  Appreciate where you are.  Appreciate the now.  Enjoy your surroundings.  See beauty.  Freedom.  I'm laughing at myself as I'm writing this because I'm wondering if I can heed my own advice and also because I sound like those old posters 'Everything I need to know in life I learned in kindergarten, or from my dog etc.!'

Anyway, all is good.  I'll figure this all out and hope that this sidestep doesn't hurt the Philadelphia Distance Run and the Steamtown Marathon.   Luckily, I won't need to be running sub 6:30's.  :)  5 weeks and counting...

P.S.  This really is more than just a butterfly.  I saw this butterfly out of the corner of my eye and ran into the house to get my camera.  It was still there and it kept flitting from one Zinnia flower to the next.  I must have watched it for a few minutes.  My mother gave me the dried seeds from her flower heads of last years garden.  I didn't do much to make them grow.   Just dug them in and gave them some water.  Maybe that's what my body needs; just a little rest, water and sunshine and maybe a few glasses of wine  ;)

Cheers and it is a beautiful day for a run!

RunningBrooke