Get Off the Road!

Disclaimer: don't try this with a newborn, but once your kids are a bit older (I'm currently running with a 2-year-old), try to go off the road!

I have developed a passion for TRAIL RUNNING and actually managed to win my age group in the EX2 Adventures Backyard Burn 10-mile Trail Running series this spring BUT I still do the large majority of my running with my daughter in a jogger. Much can be accomplished running up and down paved hills, but don't shy away from getting off the paved paths!

What are the benefits of trail running? It gets you away from traffic - both the hazards of motor vehicles and the fumes, it is so much quieter, and there is often more to look at. We pass people walking dogs, we have seen birds, ducks, geese, squirrels, storks, turtles, frogs, snakes, foxes, deer, caterpillars, butterflies, and more. The terrain can also be more exciting for your child. We do up and down and through curvy turns. The occasional bump, bump, bump is fun!

Where to go? There are, of course, a variety of levels. Here in Northern Virginia, there are SO MANY choices. Burke Lake Park, for example, is a partially paved and partially packed dirt, fairly level trail that circumnavigates the lake in a 4.5 mile loop. This is a path oft-traveled by our local See Mommy Run group. The recently renovated Cross County Trail has both paved and unpaved sections as well. Part of that trail also skirts Lake Accotink with the much-enjoyed waterfall! There is also the C&O canal and the WO&D path. Even Wakefield Park in Annandale is passable with a stroller with a little upper-body strength :) If you are feeling really adventurous, you can often follow underneath power lines and telephone lines. I'm told that the telephone lines passing next to our house go all the way to Richmond! I haven't yet brought the stroller to Fountainhead, but I'm game to try.

Pain in your Brain?

New Scientist Magazine recently published an article "Pain be gone" by Clare Wilson (22 Jan 2011, No 2796, pg 34-37) which noted research that while scientists would like to find a pain (P1) area of the brain as there is a vision area, auditory area, etc., it is more likely that pain is a product of many parts. As an endurance athlete and the mother of three children, each born via natural, drug-free childbirth, this notion resounds with me. To me, pain is often actually fear. The amygdala is the part of the brain associated with emotions including fear which is undoubtably a huge factor. I would go further in also including the pre-frontal cortex known for controlling cognitive thought.

I've always found that when the cause of the pain is known and you know that no further damage is being done, the pain is much more bearable. When the pain has a known endpoint such as the birth of the child or the end of the race, I would actually expect that the pain would be rated as less painful (i.e. a "5" rather than a "7" on a scale from 0 to 10).

Whether my thinking applies as well to chronic pain as to acute pain is debatable. What does pain have to do with "training with your jogging stroller"? Do you need to ask? Burning quads never seem to hurt as much as a pulled muscle. I would venture to say that is because you 1. know what is causing the pain and 2. know that it is not causing further damage. The burning in your lungs you may feel when you are breathing hard is not painful or stressful as compared to an asthma attack.

Groundhog's Day

I'm tired. I'm tired of the cold weather. I'm tired of it taking 15 minutes to get all of our clothes on to go outside. I'm tired of my hands being so cold that it feels like my fingernails are going to fall off whenever I run in fewer than TWO pairs of gloves. I'm tired of the kids being home for fear-of-snow days. I'm tired of fighting with kids about getting dressed in the morning (like it is a surprise EVERY day that you have to put clothes on?!?!) I'm tired of climbing over piles of gross dirty snow at every intersection. I'm tired of drivers looking at me like I am a negligent parent because I am running on the street in bright daylight, facing traffic on a road that is at least three lanes wide. I'm tired of stepping in dog poop because it seems that dog owners only feel like picking it up when it is comfortably warm and convenient for them to do so. I'm tired of searching for the matching mitten. I'm tired of waking up at 4:30 am to go to the gym when I don't want to brave frigid temps outside. I'm tired of snow getting packed into the treads of my running shoes. It feels like I'm running in high heels. You can pretty easily conclude I don't like high heel shoes either. I'm tired of my jogging stroller refusing to roll in a straight line. I'm tired of wet snow gear sprawled across the entry way, kitchen, and dining room. I'm tired of the older kids - stuck at home for another snow day - teaching the 2 year-old curse words. I'm tired of drivers looking at me like I am a negligent parent because I've taken my children outside at all.

And I'm going to do it all again tomorrow.

Safety Third*

Just a couple miles from my son's preschool is Lake Accotink which, among other features, has a dam that looks like a waterfall. This is a sufficiently exciting destination for my two year old. This is also completely irrelevant except to explain why we were not beginning our run from home.

In short, the clip broke as I was buckling my daughter into her 5-point harness. I wanted to go, so we went anyway. We had the "bubble" (windshield) all hooked up, so she could not have fallen out. She sat still for the first half and then on our way back, the stroller started to get a little jumpy. I suddenly realized, "Hey! What are you doing?" She had turned herself around to sit on the foot rest facing the seat. Then a couple minutes later, things felt a little crooked so I look over and she is upside down! Then hanging over the side watching the wheel spin. Once we made it to the top of the hill, she did listen to reason and logic that she should sit still for going faster downhill.

I was fortunate that I saved the harness clips from my old stroller so I could easily replace the clips. They are, of course, not interchangeable from one brand to another.

*We've been watching a lot of "Dirty Jobs" episodes and this is also the name of one of the episodes.

Sled Dog Mom

How did I not think of this last winter when we were buried under feet of snow? Sorry no pic, but while the trails are still covered in snow and ice, rather than trying to shove the stroller over the bumps and ice, I've been pulling two kids on the plastic sled. It glides smoothly on the snow - even the leafy melted spots- and I get to pull instead of push which is a welcome change for my shoulders. An even greater advantage now that I no longer have a double stroller, is that I can fit two kids in the sled which is great since preschool Christmas vacation is already in full swing. Downhill is a little dicey, but that is part of the fun :)

Marine Corp Photos

Click here to see pictures of me and Roger running in the Marine Corp marathon in October.
I think it will only last until October 2011, but in the meantime...

Bike Stroller

So, you might say that the mourning period has passed for the loss of my double stroller. Moving on to greener pastures, I have bought my first bike trailer! A fairly consistent road biker for many years, I am learning to mountain bike. Child #3 is coming along for the ride! At just 2 years old, she is a veteran of the jogging stroller and we will, of course, continue with that as well, but we are adding more variety. I have ridden with my other kids in a bike seat that mounts between the handlebars and the rider, but none of my current bikes can accommodate the seat.

Many of the considerations are the same for choosing a bike trailer as a jogging stroller. The wheel diameter choices are 16" or 20". You can choose a double or a single. There is, of course, a range of prices from over $900 (Chariot) to under $100 (inStep). All come with a wind screen which is important for protecting against flying debris from your back tire. Burleys are a great choice, especially for bumpier trails, but I went with the cheapest one: InStep. For occasional use and a small child (under 40 lbs), it seems like a great starter trailer. I could even buy a second one and still spend less than the next brand up.

The 16" tires won't roll quite as smoothly as the 20" ones, but they will be compatible with the tires and inner tubes I already have for my jogging stroller. Once this train is rolling forward, not much is going to stop if anyhow.

The bike trailers also fold up much smaller than strollers so my garage likes this too.