The West Coast Hails (California Dreaming)

So it has been far too long since the sole XY in the group (I need to recruit some more testosterone toting team-mates!) Other than general lackadaisical laziness preventing me from writing, I have in fact moved to the West Coast. San Francisco to be specific.

This marks my second full week here, meaning that I've now been here long enough to have settled in to the bar scene, the new office life, and most importantly, the running scene.

Before coming here, I'd heard many a story about San Franciscans being incredibly outdoorsy and active, and hence the running would be splendid. Well, so far my experience would be errring on the good side, but definintely still within the category of "caveat emptor."

The good:

The weather is absolutely perfect for running. In the mornings and evenings there is almost always a light fog, the air is cool and moist, but not unbearably humid. There is generally a good breeze - strong enough to keep you cool, but not so stern that it slows you down when you're running into it. This is all a serious breath of fresh air (I know, I'm sorry) compared to the sauna that is New York in the middle of summer.

• Average High Temperature July is 66F (19C) with zero rainfall
• Average High Temperature January is 57F (14C) with 5" (13cm) rainfall

The view is generally splendid - the hills mean you get wonderful vistas of the city, and the Embarcadero has views of both the Bay and Golden Gate bridges. It's tough to beat this as eye candy whilst running:

Then again, we are in San Francisco, so don't be surprised if this is the view you get:

The hills are absolutely gruelling and hence incredible for Comrades training:

The Bad:

The hills are absolutely gruelling and hence incredible for Comrades training:

Seriously have you seen these hills?

Block Length and Light Timing is COMPLETELY off for runners. All of the traffic lights in the city are bizarrely short with no specific direction of preference (each way seams to get the same amount of time irrespective of size of road) thus you will find yourself stopping at every...single...light... and trying to run in the direction of traffic on main avenues won't help at all. The only place to get a feasibly long run is on the Embarcadero, or one of the Southern streets in SoMa.

All in all, I'd give San Francisco a 3.5 / 5.0 for runners. The weather means that it's a hell of a lot more comfortable run than in NY, but the hills and the lights make it a frustrating killer, unless running on the Embarcadero, in which case you have to play dodge the tourist!

I'm sure after a few more months here I'll discover more nuances in the running scene here, but that's my take for now. Next up, this Sunday will be taking a 10 mile run in Golden Gate park, which has been recommended to me by many a local as "better than Central Park!" Ostentatious and ballsy to say the least! We'll see...

Run, Lola, Run aka Running in the Garden of Horses

Today we have a lovely guest post from Dasha (!!), who managed to work in a touristy run while visiting Stuttgart. Obviously Dash isn't in Germany in the photo, just evidence that running is also very handy when terrorizing Tanzanian goats...

So while Monica has been training for her 192,839,280kilometer-uphill races, I am lucky if I motivate myself for a 200 meter trot every other week. However, while I was visiting the lovely German city of Stuttgart, I got dragged out for a run by one of my friends. Now, to be fair, my friend K works on one of the U.S. military bases in Stuttgart and actually has a physical component to his job; therefore, our definition of "running" was a bit different.

I am currently on month 2 of 8 of an around the world trip, and I have to admit that running is one of the best-est ways to see a city. Not only do you cover the territory faster, but many popular running paths are just the exact mixture of passing by some very scenic sites, and being off of the tourist path. Stuttgart is Germany's sixth largest city (at least according to Wikipedia), and has a very nice public park right in the center. The name Stuttgart roughly roughly means "Garden of Horses" from "stout" for horse and "garten" for garden or compound. Interestingly, some hypothesize that the Stuttgart city seal is actually the basis for the Porsche logo; so it seems like the perfect place for a run!
One thing about European cities is that they are just so much more friendly for pedestrians and bikers. Some cities (like London) have bike paths that are adjacent to the roadway, while others (like Stuttgart) have bike pathways adjacent to the sidewalk. Word of wisdom, beware of the later! While running in Stuttgart was very nice because it involved a minimal amount of street jogging, the cyclists can freaking get ya! One thing that is kind of funny slash peculiar is that Germans do not jaywalk. Ever. Now, as any city runner can tell you, jaywalking is an essential part of actually being able to run in a city. So while I am sure we offended German sensibilities with our rampant jay-running, it definitely beat waiting for every street light.

The Stuttgart public park is quite large and very beautiful. Because my legs gave out after the first 35 minutes of our run, I was very thankful that the park also had an extensive kids' playground. While my friend elected to keep running for another few miles, I enjoyed some quality swinging on the swings time! As much as the layout was very pedestrian/biker friendly, I really wish they had stuck some water fountains somewhere in the park; thanks to global warming this summer has been an unseasonably hot one in many parts of Europe, and with temperatures close to 90 by the time we hit the park, I was really wishing for a hydration option (guess I should purchase a hydration belt, right Monica?). On the way back I was re-energized by views of the castle, and (not going to lie) dreams of the beer awaiting me at the end of the run. Nevertheless, I would be lying if I didn't admit that the following days my legs were begging for mercy.

This weekend is made of alcohol and win. And running.

Braved the snowpocalpyse and headed down to DC for the long weekend! Although it's definitely been 48 hours of Olympic themed jello shots, NAIMUN sketching, and epic reunions, still managed to sneak in a run yesterday morning at Emily's gym. Possibly the most painful experience of my life - sweating tequila for five+ miles is not fun. FYI, just in case you ever develop a temporary case of insanity and think that sounds like a great idea.

Hungover runs - yay or nay? May not be the most thought provoking question but considering the number of brain cells I killed last night, it's remarkable that I can even type this post. Usually I feel like running expedites the detox process, although I'm not sure of the science behind that... Placebo effect anyone?

Anyways, assuming the snow holds off and the roads are clear, I'll do my weekly long run tomorrow morning along the Potomac River. Really looking forward to returning to my old running haunt and trotting down to Mount Vernon. Also feeling very inspired to athletic greatness after watching a bit of the winter biathlon - cross country sprinting a 10K seems a lot more taxing that my leisurely 11miler.

Motivation FAIL

I do not want to go running today. There, I've said it. Most days I anxiously watch the clock for 5 or 6pm to roll around, then bound downstairs to the gym, eager to conquer new distances and shatter PBs. Or at the very least take a much needed break from my cubicle. Not today. Maybe it's simply exhaustion or the 19 miles I've run in the past 3 days or, quite honestly, the bottles of wine the girls and I killed last night. Whatever the cause, no amount of DC (Diet Coke for non-addicts) or coffee can shake my lethargy.

So what's a tired runner to do? My deeply ingrained Catholic guilt won't allow me to happily skip a day of training, so I could force myself to slog through today's scheduled 6 mile run. However, the last thing I want is to turn running into an odious chore, just another to-do on my endless stickie lists. Separation makes the heart grow fonder right? Well at the very least it'll give my tired legs a rest.

So I think I will grudgingly take the day off. Instead of hitting the treadmill, I'll leave the office a little early (!!), perhaps indulge in retail therapy, make these tasty looking granola bars, and bake some IRISH CAR BOMB CUPCAKES for Sunday's Super Bowl party. Surprisingly there are other activities that can be just as unwinding as running.

On a parting note, for those interested in the science of fitness and speed, the New York Times had a very good article on peak performance and weight loss yesterday. For runners, the general rule of thumb is that for every 1% decrease in body weight, you can expect a 1% decrease in time. While I may not run to lose weight, the lure of dropping my race times is very tempting. However, the article is quick to point out that losing pounds past one's ideal weight can be equally detrimental to performance as carrying an extra few. So don't worry, Emi, there will be no intentional return to the Lau coffee diet!