What Not to Eat...

So, today I learned a very important lesson: do not eat a ginormous lunch less than one hour before you run. It does not feel good. My tummy was turning by the end and I didn't have as good of a run as I think I could have had I eaten earlier and perhaps hydrated myself a little better. (Apparently two cups of coffee and one large iced tea does not a hydrated woman make. Who knew?) So not my smartest day, obviously.

Nausea aside, I had another good, tough run today. There was very little pain in my lower legs, though they're a little tired now. The Runner's Edge training classes start two weeks from tomorrow and I think I'll be ready. I can't believe how fast time is flying!!

I would like to start doing yoga again. Since I had some extra time after my run today, I did a lot more stretching than I normally do. (Though I do always stretch post run.) I noticed that my muscles, particulary in my legs have gotten a LOT tighter since I quit doing yoga every week. My utadasana, or inverted mountain pose, was not looking good! (Utadasana is standing with your feet pointed slightly inward at the front of your mat and leaning forward at the hips to touch your toes. I'm not a yogi so that description is probably way off but just go with it.) A few months ago, I could put my hands almost flat on the ground in this pose with my knees straight. Today, I could barely brush the ground with my fingertips and my knees were even a little bent. Damn! I did a few Downward Facing Dogs and those felt good, so once I get into a good training routine I'm going to try and go back to my Monday night yoga classes.

Anyway, in an earlier post I mentioned my running power song, but I realized today when I was running that I actually have a number of good power songs for working out, so I'll start closing my blog posts with a song that inspired me recently. Most will come from my iPod but a few might come from what Stephanie plays in The Lift or what I hear in spinning. A few disclaimers, though: 1. It's been a long time since I've had a fully functioning computer, so the music on my iPod is way old. 2. I really prefer punk and rock music so I don't recommend downloading these songs for your small children or impressionable friends.

Power Song of the Day: "Billie Jean" by Me First and the Gimme Gimmes. While I'm a die-hard MJ fan and would normally be offended that anyone would even try and cover Billie Jean, Me First does a nice job of turning it into a punk song and giving it a good beat for working out. The original is obviously better for any and all other situations, though.