I’ll Tumble for Ya

Mornings are never fun at my house. While my daughters are both extremely cute and generally quite sweet. When first awoken they resemble surly teenagers trapped inside the bodies of angry little elves.

But today was extra fun - it began with a bang. My three year-old took a tumble down the stairs as we were getting ready to leave the house. I’m not sure how she did it. I was in the kitchen. I heard a thud, and then a rumble and I got to the stairwell just in time to see her hit the bottom. She cried a little but said she was fine. We checked her for bumps and blood, gave her an ice pack, and she was fine.

It was scary as hell and the second time one of the kids has fallen down the stairs in the last year. In both cases they were fine and in both cases we couldn’t have done much to prevent the falls. I’m not saying you shouldn’t put gates at the top and bottom of your stairs, I’m just saying they won’t stop every fall.

So while my daughter began her day by tumbling down the stairs, I on the other hand, began my morning with a 2.2 mile run on a treadmill (the longest distance I have run since doing my first 5K in September).

And while my daughter felt fine a few minutes after falling down an entire set of stairs,) I feel like I’m walking around on knees filled with the little gravel that goes in the bottom of fish tanks. And since I live with two little girls, I envision knees filled with pink and purple gravel.

Oh to be a kid again. I'm not asking to be able to fall down the stairs without a scratch. But it would be nice to do a short run without feeling like my joints are filled with small rocks.

Dogfish Dash - My First 5K

On Sunday, I ran my first 5K – the Dogfish Dash in Milton, DE. It was better than I expected. The middle mile was rough and I had to walk for a few minutes, but all in all it was good. I managed to finish in 39:59. I realize this isn’t a remotely impressive time. But for the first race of a 35 year-old who always bailed on the mile in middle school and high school, I’ll take it!

And I never could have done it without my playlist. My playlist could not have been better. My “power song,” Mr. Brightside by the Killers kicked on right as I was doing the uphill section of the last mile. And yes, I realize that anything by the Killers should be considered suspect as a “power song.” I can’t help it. The song sets the perfect cadence for me. Even better, as I rounded back on to the Dogfish property for the last .2 miles, Surrender by Cheap Trick came blasting out of my ear buds. I felt like Conan O’Brien running from NYC to LA.

And the best part, my wife and daughters were waiting at the finish line and cheering me on. I thought they were happy for me. Turns out they were just eager to get their hands on the green re-useable water bottles that all of the runners that beat me were using.

Mezcal Madness

If you’ve read my blog before, you may have caught on that I love beer and smoked meats. This love has not been great for my waistline. So, earlier this year, I started running and limited my drinking to Friday, Saturday, and Sunday only. I did some math – my beer, wine, and cocktail calories were adding a decent chunk (pun intended) to my weekly caloric intake.

So, I was kind of shocked last night when I realized I hadn’t had a single drop of tequila or mezcal all summer long. The P90’s love Mexican food, but we rarely have it on the weekend, opting instead for “fancier” fare. As a result, I haven’t had the occasion to mix up margaritas, palomas, or agavonis.

But the weather last night was amazing. The deck was calling. And it was too nice of an evening not to sit outside and enjoy a cocktail.

So I made an agavoni. But I used mezcal in place of the tequila. It was delicious. A little rough around the edges (isn’t mezcal always?), but delicious.  So I broke my no drinking during the week rule. It’s cool. The weather is lovely tonight and I went for a run. It will all equal out in the end…

Here’s the recipe

• 2 oz. Mezcal
• 1 oz. Campari
• 1 oz. Sweet Vermouth
• A few dashes of Orange Bitters
• Twist of Grapefruit Peel

Serve over ice.

The 30-something Music Geek’s Running Mix

I’ve successfully made it through four weeks of my Couch-to-5k program. It’s nothing to be that proud about, but it’s a start. And aside from the encouragement from my little cheering section in a jogging stroller, I can thank my running playlist.

Being that I am a total music geek, my running mix isn’t your usual running mix. It’s all pop-punk, ska, and indie rock. I won’t give you the full shebang, but here are my top 14. It's 39 minutes (a few more minutes than I can run).

And for those of you scratching your heads about Surrender by  Cheap Trick, I figure if it was Conan’s soundtrack for his run from NYC to LA, it can carry me through a short jog around the ‘burbs.

Succeeding at not Being Lazy

It turns out I have the best personal trainers around. Well, the best cheering section at least. The Mrs. And I started the Couch-to-5k program on Friday morning. Due to some glare and being a little groggy, I accidentally started us on Day 3 by spinning a little wheel on the iPhone app before hitting “start.” Oops.

We’re finally using the jogging stroller for jogging. We bought it for off-roading and things of that nature. Aside from adding an extra 60 lbs. worth of work-out to the mix, the girls keep us on pace and cheer us on.

Part of the Couch-to-5k program is doing intervals of jogging and walking. During our warm-up walk, my four year-old quipped “Why aren’t you guys running? You said we were going running!” Luckily, her tone improved as we continued. They both shouted “We’re going fast now” and “faster, faster” during the run. And then at the end, the two year-old said “good job guys, good running.”

Works for me. Especially since I’m running for them. My dad died at 60. I’m in better shape than he was at my age, and I don’t smoke. But I’d like to make sure I have a lot more than just 25 more years with them.

We ran again yesterday and they were just as cheerful. Let's hope it lasts.

Trying not to be fat and lazy

Last year I signed up for the Dogfish Dash 5K. I trained a little and then got side-tracked. A few weeks before the race, we were invited to a birthday party (taking place on race day) at Clark’s Ellioak Farm.

It was an easy excuse to bail on the race.The girls love Ellioak Farm. When our now four year-old was two, we had a four-six month stretch where every night before bed, she demanded an Ellioak Farm story. Now that we are usually required to do P90 girls meet Tiana, P90 girls meet Ariel, or P90 girls meet Cinderella story, I really miss those Ellioak Farm stories.

But back to my point. I registered again for the Dogfish Dash. I figure if beer is largely to blame for my 20-30 lbs of excess weight – it can be part of the solution. And a race with beer at the end seems like a good idea.

So this week, I’m starting to train. I’m using the Couch-to-5K method and downloaded a handy app that will integrate voice prompts for interval training with my chosen playlist. Here goes nothing…