Holidays mean gifts, gifts, gifts!

Last year at this time I offered a list of coveted items that represented, in my estimation, some of the best product available to pleasure your runner at the holidays. Over the last 11 months I have refocused on appreciating what I have and spent much less time and energy on wanting. It's been a rewarding change, one that was subtle until I returned to the materialsm of NYC. That said, there's a wonderful beauty in giving gifts--especially the right gift! My suggestions this year come to you based not on want, but on knowledge that comes from having used all of these products for some time...

Dr. Bronner's Peppermint Castile Soap

$9.49 for 16 ounces website

There's nothing quite like coming back from a run tingling with endorphins to jump in the shower and lather up with this soap, which will make your skin tingle too. Bonus: environmentally friendly.

Nail scrub brush

Approx. $2-3

While you're in the shower with Dr. Bronner (oh-la-la!) scrub the entire, fleshy bottom of your foot with this tool that's actually intended for your nails. It will reinvigorate your tired soles. Don't forget the arch of your foot. Hint: Don't pick a brush whose bristles are very soft.

REI Performance Liner Gloves

$15 website

Perfect weight for running, wicks sweat, and feels like the softest of leathers. Reasonably priced too and REI is increasing their present in the northeast.

Lululemon Inspire Crop

$86 website

Moderate compression, nice stitching details, and the true selling point for me--perfect length for petites. I'm not joking that I wore them three days in a row starting the day I bought them. Put in over 30 miles over those three days!

Tubbs Flex Snowshoes

$179.95 website

The ultimate crosstraining option in winter. This new style of snowshoe blows the popular metal frame and plastic webbing style out of the water. I was skeptical at first but immediately sold after tackling a hill with a good grade. I wouldn't snowshoe running in these, but they're a good stepping stone to that very rapidly growing sport. Note: Available for both men and women

And here's one last silly suggestion for those, like me, who've become enamoured with nighttime running and aren't embarassed to be a little cheeky...

adidas by Stella McCartney Glow-in-the-Dark Running Shorts

$60.00 on sale website

Catch me if you can (see me).

Happy holidays!

Reclamation

My summer abode had a pull-up bar just outside the front door that had been installed for use by the local fire crew during their daily exercise circuit. Before I moved in the circuit was moved elsewhere, but the bar remained. A few of the other researchers cajoled me into doing daily pull-ups with them.

As a high school freshman I could do nine pull-ups, which I primarily attribute to my years and years of softball. I didn't play softball after sophomore year and by graduation I was down to six pull-ups. At the start of this summer, I was just holding on to one.

But the pull-up bar and the other researchers beckoned and, as frequently happens with 'new' athletic endeavors, I experienced quick progress and within two months was up to three touches of my chin to the bar.

I no longer have that pull-up bar right outside my front door, so instead I stop at the playground each time I go running and co-opt the monkey bars in order to attempt to push past three and onto four pull-ups.

This past Friday, at the climbing gym, I made a silent decision to make it back up to six by the time I graduate again (which will hopefully be with a Masters degree this spring). Here's to getting back what you thought you'd lost!

Crosstraining triple whammy

Summit HS XC team putting in the miles

at Green Lakes in view of South Sister

This post is for days when you can't get in a run like the one above...

Even though I was barely moving, as I observed myself in the mirror I could see the beginnings of uncontrollable shaking resulting from muscle fatigue. I tried not to grip the wooden, slightly higher than waist height, bar in front of me too fiercely. The instructor, thankfully, began a fairly rapid countdown. “10… 9… 8…” The class’s twenty students are in the midst of tripcep isolating push-ups utilizing a ballet bar that is present on three walls of the studio. It’s one of the classic components of an hour long class that skillfully combines ballet, yoga, and pilates. The location is Bend, Oregon’s Barre 3 studio. I found my way here through an enthusiastic recommendation provided by an employee at the Lululemon showroom downtown. I’m glad I took her advice, because Barre 3 is quickly delivering possibly the most intense indoor workout I have ever received in a class setting.

The upbeat, popular music playing in the studio immediately signals that Barre 3’s tri-sport blend does not dwell on the ‘zen’ aspects of yoga. From a physical perspective, the blended workout targets improving arm, core, and leg strength by leading students through two to four minute exercises that isolate these areas one-by-one, rapidly bringing you to the point of shaking, utter submission to your muscles’ lack of sustained strength. The ballet bar provides a helpful resistance tool and support structure. A yoga strap in combination with the bar increases stability in postures that might otherwise be more about balance than strength and depth. A rubber ball that is most often placed between one’s thighs and squeezed with as much attention as can be mustered while also working on another muscle group provides multi-dimensionality to a subset of the hour’s exercises.

During my first visit I received personal instruction about the fact that it is often harder to move small, distinct amounts slowly than to make large, rapid movements while executing the exercises. This is probably familiar to most people who regularly engage in weight training, but it wasn’t top of mind to me until it was gently pointed out. At this point in the class we had assumed a plie position, checked the positioning and alignment of our pelvis, assumed a tight core, and then asked to dip one inch towards the floor in this position and then return to the original squat, repeating this action over and over. I was happily and quickly dipping up and down, when the instructor told me I’d experience more results from a slow, deliberate movement up and down. I let my momentum dissipate and immediately the movement became considerably more difficult. In order to execute the control necessary to move slowly and deliberately I had to tighten my core considerably more than when I was rapidly bouncing up and down. It was a lesson that I would need to heed for the remainder of the class.

So, in broad sweeping strokes, what exactly does a yoga, pilates, ballet-based class at Barre 3 entail? It starts with a warm-up in the center of the studio and thereby distant from all of the classes’s props—bar, ball, and strap. After some squats, arm circles, and standing, mobile stretching that brings the heart rate up, the class moves to a series of exercises utilizing the ballet bar. Assuming a plank position with all fingers wrapped around the bar there are a number of push-up simulating exercises that get your biceps and triceps quaking. Then everyone places a leg on the bar and stretching and twisting movements commence. It’s helpful that the walls of the studio behind the ballet bar are mirrors, because you’re constantly able and encouraged to check your form. Over this initial bar session your arms are thoroughly exhausted and your legs are warmed up. Halfway through the class all students move to the floor and are lead through hip openers and abdomen strengtheners. It is this section of the class that draws the most from yoga. Classic poses such as pidgeon, tree, and boat are called upon. Boat pose is aided by wrapping the yoga strap around the ballet bar. The strap is then held loosely between thumb and forefinger. I think that ideally, the strap should be predominantly a psychological aid in this situation rather than a physical one, but for most people it likely serves both roles.

With the abdominal work in particular, I notice something that is one of the defining characteristics of the difficulty of this workout. After the instructor finishes the countdown that signals the completion of a particular set of repetitions, you are not ‘allowed’ to release the pose. Instead you remain there and a new set of exercises is begun from that base point. This lack of release and continued hold makes the overall difficulty of the workout considerably greater, as it reduces those ‘sigh of relief and release’ moments that I’ve become accustomed to in traditional yoga classes.

By the end of the hour long class my body was in a delirious state of overwhelming weakness and fatigue. It’s the sort of situation where you’re infinitely thankful when the class ends because there’s a part of your mind that wasn’t sure you could keep going for another minute. After each of the Barre 3 classes I took, I gingerly moved myself post-class from the studio into the well appointed bathroom where I claimed a fluffy, white towel and took a quick and refreshing shower. The overall sensation by the time I departed to my car was one of bodily rebirth via well distributed fatigue. The following day sore muscles across my collarbones, upper back, and upper abdomen indicated that muscle groups that are hardly ever triggered were encouraged to a new state of use by the class.

My first experience at Barre 3 was so eye opening and surprising that I couldn’t settle for just that one visit. I came back twice more and each time found myself more and more challenged by the workout. Barre 3’s hour long practice offers up the equivalent of several hours practice anywhere else. It make the $20 per class price tag well worthwhile, especially when you consider the extra amenities available (if you choose to use them), such as childcare, fully appointed bathroom and shower facilities, and all equipment made available (no need to bring your own mat, strap, block, or ball). Even further, the studio’s owner is personable, energetic, and welcoming. I was happy to support her endeavor, which incredibly was beginning to bring definition to my arm muscles with only three visits!

It turns out that the combination of ballet, yoga, and pilates isn’t a new concept and isn’t unique to Barre 3. Many major American cities have studios that employ the combination, including Physique 57 in New York City. Now that I’ve had the chance to experience it, I’m hoping the trend continues to grow and the workout is made increasingly available because it’s one of the most effective I’ve ever encountered. A weekly visit to Barre 3 in combination with my regular running, hiking, and biking would give me the well roundedness fitness routine I think we all search for.

From tidal pools to volcanic lakes--Memorable trail running

The last few years I'd come to think of Marin County as the trail running mecca of my dreams. Then Oregon happened to me, and I'm increasingly becoming convinced that this place can't be surpassed. First of all, if you want to run on pavement you're practically out of luck. Everything here is a trail and they are everywhere! On a day-to-day basis there are a boggling number of options, especially if you consider unpaved Forest Service roads options.

Every run I've taken here has been memorable, but there are two in particular that I'm near certain will go down as life bests. Keep in mind that for me it's not my pace or even how I physically feel that defines the experience--it's what I get to see and do and the emotions those things incite that makes the run.

The first experience took place at 6am on the coast. I was staying in the lightkeeper's house of the Heceta Head lighthouse between Florence and Yachats. There is a trail that starts at the lighthouse, scales the head, and then drops down to the two mile long Washburne Beach on the other side. The head had been socked in with fog since I had arrived the previous afternoon. The morning was no different and created mystical, ethereal conditions. The side of the head away from the lighthouse is almost always foggy and it creates conditions for temperate rainforest. That morning everything was dripping, green, and the wild rhododendrons were in bloom. Just before the beach the hemlocks grow so thick and low overhead that the trail is called the Hobbit Trail.

Washburne Beach with mist shrouded Heceta Head in the distance

When I broke out on Washburne Beach I found that the tide was out, and here this means the ocean has receded almost a quarter mile. I could barely see the water, but it meant a broad swath of hard-packed sand to run on. Half a mile later the unexpected happened--a runner appeared out of the fog and came towards me. We exchanged, "morning"s and I think he was more surprised to see me than I him, because he likely didn't see any other cars in the beach parking lot and wondered how I got there.

Soon after passing the runner I saw large clusters of rocks that normally are covered at higher tides. I ran towards them in the hopes of tidal pools, but I was skeptical because I've never found a tidal pool with any significant living organisms in it. For once my skepticism was unfounded! Before I could get very close I started seeing starfish on the rocks. They were enormous and either purple or orange. Many were bigger than the width of my hand with outstretched fingers. In places there were so many that they overlapped one another. And they weren't all! There were mussels, sea squirts, urchins, and blue and green sea anemones. I had stopped running and started gaping.

Before long I had to head back because the lighthouse inn serves a seven course breakfast to all guests at 8:30am each morning. It was hard to leave without running the entire length of the beach, but the breakfast was worth it (peach blintzes for the last course--yum!!) and I looked forward to passing through the head's forest once again. I hope I'm lucky enough to repeat this run in the future.

The second run was inside Newberry Crater National Monument. I've taken to bringing running clothes with me wherever I go because opportunities to run crop up unexpectedly. I stopped at the visitor center to obtain a map and some advice from the young volunteers. Through a series of exchanges I learned that the 7.5 mile trail around Paulina Lake, one of the two lakes within the caldera, is running friendly. Thankfully they also told me to use bug spray before setting off.

I spent the afternoon and early evening clambering around on an obsidian flow and swimming in East Lake (all attempts to find the submerged hot springs were fruitless). It finally started to cool off and I set out on the run. I was immediately presented with large clouds of small bugs that just hatched from the lake. During the first five minutes I was focused solely on using the brim of my hat to keep them out of my eyes, mouth, and nose. Eventually I looked down at my legs mid-stride and saw they were covered with more than a hundred small black spots. The bugs were dying and sticking to my bug spray coated legs as I ran through them!

Thankfully I was soon out of this marshy area and into beautiful mixed conifer forest with the lake sparkling alongside. I couldn't have been happier, which helped me to ignore my complaining lungs (I was 2,000 feet higher in elevation than my lungs are accustomed to). I passed through several campgrounds, which contained the only people I saw during the run, and all of a sudden the water took on aquamarine shades. The volcanic rock that composed the lake bottom dropped off precipitously a few feet from shore. All along the underwater cliff I could see fish seeking out the hot water flowing from hidden springs. When I managed to look up and across the lake I saw the scree slopes of Paulina Peak, which were still holding onto a few banks of snow. The water and the peak combined for a breathtaking view. The next third of the run reminded me that I was within a volcano. A huge pumice flow was on the righthand side of the trail for close to a mile and then I ran up and around a large, red cinder cone that dropped down to the water where again schools of fish hugged the shores. The last third of the run was back to mixed conifer forest, but I spent a lot of time looking out onto the water to observe the activities on several boats where the occupents were fishing.

The bugs that stayed with me all the way to the end of the run

The mosquitos were brutal over the last mile, but the DEET kept them at bay. The light started to take on shades that signaled sunset was coming and it enhanced the views of Paulina Peak. The end of the run was funny because it featured me sprinting across the parking lot at the trailhead to the car and jumping in while closing the door as quickly behind me as possible in order to prevent the mosquitos from coming in with me. I reflected on the thoughts I'd had across the lake about what I'd think and do if the volcano had started to erupt on my run (live magma is only 2-3 miles below the surface). I was thankful all had stayed peaceful, but if an eruption had happened I was happy to say I didn't think I'd regret what brought me there.


I have many runs ahead of me as I prepare for a half marathon in early August, but the memory of these two will be top of mind for some time to come. Here's to any and all trail exploring you might be doing this summer!

318, 633, 108, 79, 666, 59... to 4,236

In April and May I was enjoying an eight mile run once a week. The last mile was always a bit painful and slow because I wasn't training enough beyond that run, but it was still pleasant. Now, one month later, I'm struggling with anything past three. The culprit is altitude.

I grew up on the east coast and was always fairly close to the ocean or Great Lakes (the list before the ellipsis in the title of this post is the elevation of every place I've lived). A research question, however, has transplanted me to the vicinity of Bend, Oregon, where the altitude hovers above 4,000 feet. In my height naivete, I thought that anything over 5,000 feet qualified as "at altitude", but here I am sucking wind with aching lungs at 1,000 feet less than that.

I ran with a women's group organized by one of Bend's premier running stores last night. The fit women of the group made understanding noises and faces when I brought up my struggling lungs. Unfortunately, they left me crestfallen by agreeing that it takes a long time to acclimate--probably longer than I'll even be here (which is a little less than three months). This means that the half marathon I've signed up to run in early August is sure to be the biggest running challenge I've tackled yet. Elevation at the race's start? 3,640 feet.

In the meantime, I'll try to be content working my way back up to eight miles (then to ten and then to twelve in preparation for the half). I am fully at the mercy of my body's adaptability, but I'm going to do some research too. I assume I'm not doing any damage when I experience intense discomfort in the lower portion of my lungs around mile four, but who I am to know? This is all new to me! (You should have heard my panting when I climbed a rise at Crater Lake last weekend where the elevation is well over 7,000 feet.)

The best possible outcome would be to find out that I'm more fit than ever been before when I return to sea level in September!

Snapshot: Ice Climbing

As promised, some images of last weekend's ice climbing excursion.

Just the beginning of the ice...

Lower half

Bolton Quarry, VT

Tackling the upper half

No winter fatigue here

It's been a long time. A lot of my absence has been work related, but a substantial portion has also been that I've been trying to live up to my nickname--Adventure Girl. Since December I've skied five mountains in two countries, passed a course that allows me to fight wildand fire, taken two snowshoe excursions, summitted one above treeline mountain after dark, and spent one night winter camping. I'm topping it all off with a day of ice climbing this coming weekend.

But I'm especially happy because I've also fit some running into the last hectic month. Not a lot, mind you, but a bit. There's also promise to step things up a notch over the next few months. I've discovered two groups of runners to spend time with--one that holds midnight runs and another that focuses on long, weekend runs.

I'm always intrigued by how my other physical activities effects my thoughts about running. Here are a few themes of late:

• NIMBLENESS So important in winter's icy conditions. Also, there's immense please in imitating a mountain goat. Watching a person's level of nimbleness is often an indication of natural athletic abiulity and awareness of body. Working on nimbleness is one of my favorite aspects of trail running, but it's also extremely helpful to have when you're wearing awkward snowshoes.


• SURVIVAL Being fit, ideally especially fit, often means that you're going to be better equipped to cope in extreme situations. So many things have brought this to mind recently from Haiti to a seriously struggling hiking companion on a recent trip to VT. It also was top of mind while practicing use of fire shelters. Knowing that I can run 10+ miles makes me feel much more confident about my survivability.


• COMMUNITY I'm notoriously anti-social at times, but I love spending time with people when we're engaged in an athletic activity. It is, hands down, the best way to meet good people. I particularly value the fact that you can quickly learn about an individual's character and driving motivations. Whiners tend to show their true colors very quickly.

I'm beginning to seriously consider two half marathons for the spring and summer. For spring--the Bear Mountain 1/2. For summer--the Bend, Oregon Haulin' Aspen 1/2. Both are trail runs, which is more and more my preference.

I'll post some ice climbing shots soon and will look to continue to diversify my winter sports portfolio by finding an opportunity to ice skate and learning how to curl. It's too bad there isn't a broomball team at Yale!