The Neck Check

Early last week, I was out of commission with a bad cold. Walking from my bed to the couch was sufficient physical exertion, so running was clearly out of the question. But within a few days I felt mostly better and was debating whether to head out for a run or take it easy. My (totally unfounded) hypothesis was that the endorphins I’d release when running would help strengthen my immune system. But given that a fast recovery was higher priority than sustaining my weekly mileage, I decided to do the responsible thing and see what the experts have to say.


An article in Runner’s World, “Should You Run When You’re Sick” had some good info, and a few of the articles I read concurred on the “Neck Check”—if your symptoms are all above the neck (cough, runny nose, etc) it’s okay to run. If you have other symptoms or your body doesn’t feel up for it, a run will likely do more harm than good.


By Saturday I was finally feeling better and headed out for a run—and was glad I had waited to do so. Once I was on the road I remembered my favorite part of being sick—a renewed appreciation for my healthy self.

It’s Not About Winning

Yesterday I ran the Honan J Brian 5K in Allston, and having been the first race I’ve run in months, was a much-welcomed reminder of how much I enjoy races. The course went through Allston and Brighton centers and was followed by a parade and street festival on Harvard St.—featuring live bands, arts & crafts vendors, and samples of food, drinks and random health-related giveaways. I walked away feeling full and happy, and took home a bag full of freebies—my favorite being a 6-inch, Walgreens-branded plastic basketball set that has already found its way to my office.

For those who haven’t run a race before, they’re a fun way to motivate and breathe new life into a potentially stale workout routine. You don’t have to be fast or a serious runner to run a race—just the inspiration to sign up and the interest in seeing it through. I find them a great way to stay motivated: Having a race on my calendar gives me an obvious goal to train towards, and signing up with a few friends makes it all the more fun.

For shorter distance races (5K, 10K) there are thousands out there and you can find one near any given city on mostly every weekend. Some of my favorite Websites for finding races are New England Runner, Active.com (nation-wide, and site has other, non-running races too), and Runner’s World (which has lots of great running resources).

Longer distance races are a great way to boost endurance. Half marathons are my personal favorite, because while they definitely require training, they aren’t as all-consuming as a marathon. If you’re thinking of doing one, I would strongly recommend following a training program so that you can build up your endurance and not get injured. There are hundreds of different programs to follow, but the one I used (and really liked) is Hal Higdon’s marathon training guide—which has different options for half vs. full & novice through advanced.

In the spirit of fun and motivation through organized runs, consider this your open invitation to join me this Sunday morning in Brookline MA to run a (completely non-competitive) 5K. Get more info on Facebook on my event page. Hope those of you in Boston are able to make it!

The Snooze Button

Fall has definitely arrived, and (like most of my fellow Bostonians) I’m feeling a bit robbed of my summer. The few months of mild and rainy weather left much to be desired. And suddenly a telltale sign of fall—dark mornings. For the first time since spring, my alarm clock went off in the dark, leaving me a few tempting Snooze button clicks away from skipping my morning run altogether.

But I pooled a few ‘mental resources’ to motivate my way out of bed, namely:

• Running to my ‘point of no return’. I have a landmark towards the beginning of my run and tell myself that if I’m still not in the mood when I reach it, I can turn around and go home, guilt free... Though I contentedly have yet to take myself up on that offer.


• Letting music do the work. Using my phone as a second alarm (judiciously set 15 minutes later than my alarm clock), I have it set to play a high energy (and quite obnoxious) tune. If I rest my phone close to my ear, falling back to sleep is no longer an option.


• Putting my faith in my ‘alarm-setting self’. Rather than rationalizing my way through multiple Snoozes, I persuade myself that I must have been wiser the night before when setting my alarm than I am at present. And usually I’m so groggy (e.g. gullible) that it works.

While these suggestions definitely help get me out of bed, they’re by no means fool-proof (believe me, I am certainly guilty of backpedaling my way out of many morning runs). Wiki-How also has a few words of advice on the matter of over-snoozing. And if you have some early morning motivators of your own, I’d love to hear them—because for better or worse, we have plenty of months ahead to test them out.

Consistency or Complacency?

I am definitely a creature of habit. I have 1 running route that I run 95% of the time, knowing it so well I could run it in my sleep (and in fact, during my pre-work morning runs, with both eyes and mind at half mast, I generally am more asleep than awake). There’s something comforting about running the same route. I know exactly which physical landmarks align to my internal ones: My muscles loosen up by the time I cross the BU bridge. I get my first burst of energy as soon as Mass Ave comes into view. And I know that once I hit the 2nd water fountain I can pick up the pace and rely on a good song or two to carry me through.

But yesterday I thought I'd shake things up a bit. Halfway across the BU bridge, I decided to check out the Boston Common. I ran East where I usually run West (crazy, I know) and a short while later found myself in Beacon Hill. I ran by a group of adult tourists photographing one another sitting on the Boston Common Ducks; an unusually and somewhat eerily quiet (pre-Labor Day Sale madness) Newbury Street; and later a quorum of bikers from the “weird bikes gang” I occasionally see around the city.

I got home, mapped the run, and much to my pleasant surprise discovered that I’d run the easiest 7 miles I’d run in months—and almost 2 more than my default “long run”. Apparently my body appreciated me throwing myself a curveball. If anyone reading this is also too reliant on a regular route, I would definitely encourage the occasional deviation to keep things interesting...