Daily Loaf

On Halloween, I was hopelessly spending most of the day huddled in my apartment researching the United States’ media coverage on Iran. I had purposely not made plans to celebrate the evening dressed as media sensation Balloon Boy, a firefighter with red-hot lipstick and heels, or even a cat. Instead, six weeks prior, I’d committed myself to the Hob Gobl’n 5K Race, hosted by the Dunedin House of Beer.

For about 30 bucks, I agreed to run 3.1 miles in exchange for three beers of my choice, a t-shirt, and a wonderful spaghetti and meatball dinner. Oh, and a portion of my $30 went to the Dunedin Doggie Rescue — but that wasn’t the best part. The best part was that runners were not required to wear a costume.

I suckered my classmate Manny into running in the event, too. While the purpose of my participation was to avoid the annual Halloween costume stress, Manny signed up because — well, I don’t know exactly why he participated, especially since he treated the entire event as though it were a brisk walk down a scenic trail. Read the rest of this entry »

Jen and I recently traveled to Chicago for her first marathon. She began the Chicago Marathon in exactly the same state as she finished it: excited and feeling great. She’s still in the Midwest visiting family so I’ll give you all a little recap of what it’s like to be a spectator at a marathon in another state.

In a word: awesome.

Now, I am not sure if it’s just because we were in Chicago, home of the most elaborately garnished hot dogs I have ever seen, or if destination marathons are just the way to go.

Since I was there merely for support I got to do a bit more imbibing of local beverages (try the 312 if you are ever in the Windy City) and indulging in the food and late nights.

Destination marathons are actually quite wonderful for friends and family. While your racer is going to bed early and resting the legs, you, dear athletic supporter, can roam this new locale and stay up as late as you like. Unless of course it’s Saturday night, pre-race night. Your racer could get upset if you stumble in at 2 a.m. and wake them from their much needed slumber. I was smart enough to be home by 10:30 p.m. so as to avoid this.

A benefit to this destination marathon is that when your racer is finished they can see some sights as well. You might have to wheel them around depending on the shape their legs are in, but the walking is actually good for them post-race.

The Chicago Marathon is one of the biggest, and I now know why. From the city to the people to the course itself, Chicago seems like it was made to hold a race like this. Runners travel through Boystown, Chinatown, Grant Park, and so many other historic areas. It’s unfortunate that Chi-town didn’t get the Olympics because I can totally see it working wonderfully there. If you have never been to Chicago I recommend adding this to your race schedule. And if you aren’t a runner, go see the city on your next vacation.

See running Elvises, learn tips for destination marathon-spectating and more after the break: Read the rest of this entry »

Love on the rocks
Ain’t no surprise
Pour me a drink
And I’ll sell you some lies
Got nothing to lose
So you just sing the blues all the time
-Neil Diamond

If you have been dumped then you know how bad it sucks. If you have never been there, then you are one lucky son-of-a-bitch.

About four weeks ago I was in heavy training mode for the Marine Corps Marathon. I was at 18 miles of a 22-mile training run  and it happened. I got tendonitis in my lower ankle/foot. I was out for about four weeks and had to make the decision to defer the race. My weeks away from running were like a bad break up.

Here’s my reasoning, assuming you are the dumpee and Running is the dumper: You meet running and at first you aren’t real impressed with it. It’s a little tough to get to know him/her. But you do. And you start spending a lot of time together. You spend money on Running, taking it out to fancy stores and locations. You woo it with your fancy clothes and gadgets. You even buy it lots of delicious Italian dinners. You fall in love with Running and think it feels the same way about you.

You become obsessed with Running. You think about it all the time. You doodle its name with little hearts on your checkbook while balancing it. You think you and Running will never break up. You + Running = Forever.

But then it happens. Read the rest of this entry »

Jen and I had our weekly meeting (READ: daily IM-ing during work hours) regarding our posts for CL and decided that since I am suffering through an injury I could provide you all some insights on how to make it through an injury of your own. Physically making it through is one thing, mentally making it through is another.

The week before last I headed out with the running group to get in a nice 22 mile training run. At about mile 9ish the ankle starting hurting. By mile 13 it really hurt. Did I stop? Hell no. At 18 miles I had to throw in the towel and have been babying it ever since. Read the rest of this entry »

After reading fellow CL contributor Beth’s inspirational post about her running journey last week I thought it best to continue this baring of the soul and expand upon my own running journey. What better way for our readers to understand our obsession with running than to share a little piece of ourselves with you?

That story starts in Feb. 2008 with an insomnia driven, hyper-active redhead that just got dumped. Yep, there’s nothing quite like a good old fashioned dump fest to get a girl down. I was a drunk emotional wreck as yet another opportunity of “happily ever after” slipped through my fingers. I realized quickly that I needed to find an outlet for my emotions, bottled up energy and sexual frustration lest my friends disown me, so I started running again. I’ve always run, here and there, to get some cardio in, to help me sleep a little better but this time was different. This time I put a little more into it.

By July, I was starting to eye an upcoming 5K race and committed to the July 4th Watermelon 5K that Track Shack in Orlando puts on every year. With no real training other than a few runs a week and absolutely zero knowledge of how far/fast I was going, I hit Mead Gardens for my first 5K. Thirty some odd minutes later I huffed and puffed my way through the finish-line on the verge of puking my guts out — but I was exhilarated. I just ran a 5K. Read the rest of this entry »

“This was such a terrible idea,” I thought to myself as I gasped for air while jogging in the sweltering August heat.

“Please rain, please rain, please rain,” I repeated over and over in my head.

“Oh my god! I feel like my legs are going to fall off.”

I am only 9 minutes into my jog (which is just over a mile) and the heat is getting to my head.

If you are the type of person who enjoys having an extra slice of pizza on a Friday night, buttery nipple shots on a Saturday night, and an all-you-can-eat breakfast buffet on a Sunday morning, then I’m sure you’ve uttered these negative thoughts to yourself on a Monday evening during your workout. Read the rest of this entry »

(The Stinky Drinkers are a band of runners in training for the Women’s Running Magazine Women’s Half Marathon in St. Pete November 22nd.  We love to run…we love beer…and when we’re done running, we love to toast our achievement with a pint!  We hope you’ll toast with us!)

Sunday’s early morning run turned out to be a Stinky Drinkers best by happy accident. First of all, none of us was really willing to rise with the sun on a weekend, but Luis, our new training buddy, insisted that our 8:30 a.m. start time was unacceptable. So, four “stinkers” rose at 7 a.m., grabbed a quick power bar from an open convenience store and busted tail to Demens Landing to meet our new 8 a.m. start time.

And where was Luis? Nowhere to be found. SD Lisa called him, and he answered, promising to meet us along our route, but alas…Luis never crossed our path. The morning was uncommonly cool, so the SDs in attendance grumbled that a later start time would not have meant battling extreme heat. However, in the early stages of our run, we could not have predicted how our new shotgun would benefit us as much as it eventually would…..after nearly 10 miles. Read the rest of this entry »

I’m not sure why I didn’t object when my husband boldly posted a training schedule on our refrigerator and announced that we were going to do a half-marathon.  I was in the midst of my unemployment stint and deeply distressed.  Either he believed that a goal would alleviate some of my misery or he was not-so-subtly recommending that I drop a few pounds.  Regardless of his motivation, I agreed, and the next Monday we drove down to Bayshore to begin our training. Read the rest of this entry »

(The Stinky Drinkers are merry runners who have all come together to train for the Women’s Running Magazine Women’s Half Marathon which will take place Sunday, November 22^nd in downtown St. Pete. They like running….they like beer…and they have gleaned quite a lot of wisdom from their journey thus far.)

After a Sunday spent “bonking” (desperately fading in latter miles) trying to keep up with our new running buddy, Luis, SD Lisa and I thought we would never successfully achieve more than 8.5 miles. Our heads ached. Our limbs wobbled like Jell-O, and both of us spent the better part of the afternoon sleeping off what felt very much like a mid-range hangover (the kind that causes thudding behind the eyes and extreme fatigue but no vomiting). In my last post, I mentioned that Luis attributed our downfall to lack of nourishment, but that wasn’t all. We were tackling high mileage without the juice of the gods — created by scientists at the University of Florida who were clearly under divine influence — none other than Gatorade. Read the rest of this entry »

Lots of sweat, heavy breathing, a final desperate surge to finish followed by the sweet release that leaves you in a euphoric state of bliss…

The youngin’s are doing it. Old people are doing it. You can do it alone or with a group. Some like it fast, while other’s prefer it slow. Heck even Hugh Heffner’s doing it.

Everyone is doing it; everyone is running. Gees, what did you think I was talking about? Perverts. Read the rest of this entry »

To Stinky Drinker posting regulars, welcome back!  If you’re a newbie, then you should know that the Stinky Drinkers are a band of merry runners all training for the Women’s Running Magazine Women’s Half Marathon in downtown St. Pete on November 22nd.  Our mission is to increase our mileage weekly throughout our training, and when we do, we toast with a pint at one of the Bay area’s fine thirst-quenching establishments.

So far  I’ve introduced you to 2 of our 4 founding members to date, Liz (now known as “Grist”) and Lisa (aptly named “Snake Bite”).  I’ve saved our dear Phylis for last, which means this week, you’re getting the lowdown on SD Holley (heretofore to be known as “Shok”).  I’m taking the time to make these introductions because I think it’s important that all of our potential and/or honorary SDs out there realize that anyone can do this.  We are all very, very different, but it’s those differences that make us great friends and excellent running buddies.  Think about it — if you were not only operating on your own strengths, but also on those of the people you love, you would be an unstoppable force, wouldn’t you?

We think so.  Salut!

Name: Holley, Hols, Hollister…”Hey you”….
Age: 29
Zodiac sign: Aries
Day job: Talk show host/producer/film critic and all-around busybody Read the rest of this entry »

Hello, race fans!  Stinky Drinker Holley here with an update on the progress we’ve made in training for the Women’s Running Magazine Women’s Half-Marathon coming up November 22nd!  We’re a small but mighty running team, none of whom has ever run a “half” before, motivated by sheer will and the promise of a cold beer at the end of our journey.

I have another introduction to make, but first, here’s a quick update regarding membership and training.  We’ve officially welcomed a new member, Angela, to the team, and she is rockin’ and rollin’!  On Sun. July 26 we planned to run 7 miles, but the weather and downtown St. Pete’s Warped Tour had other plans for us.  Narrowly avoiding lightning strikes (note: NEVER run if there is lightning – if you can see it, it can strike you, no matter how far away it seems), we somehow managed to log 5 miles, soaked to the bone and surrounded by equally drenched teenagers.  We did what we’re calling our “urban” route by running up and down Central Ave., window shopping along the way. For future runs, we’ve set ourselves the task of developing interesting dance moves to perform at crosswalks while waiting for the light to change.  One must keep moving, and running in place looks pretty ridiculous….might as well look flat out, stark-raving mad performing the “cabbage patch kid” instead.

So…moving on: it’s time to meet SD Liz!  To learn more about the race we’re training for, log on to www.womenshalfmarathon.com! Read the rest of this entry »

[Editor's Note: Welcome to the latest chapter in Holley Sinn's running (ha) saga of The Stinky Drinkers, a beer-driven bunch in training for the upcoming Women’s Running Magazine Women’s Half-Marathon coming up this November in downtown St. Pete.]

After our most recent run, SD Phil decided that we needed some rules.  We needed to “name” each other (which we decided should be in reference to beer since that is our carb of choice), come up with appropriate punishments for SDs who miss training sessions and award achievements such as a certain number of miles contributed to the cause.   We are still working on 2 and 3, but I came up with a little SD profile quiz which allows each “stinker” to offer up an option as to his or her beer-related nickname.  Hence, SD Lisa became “Snake Bite.”  Check out the rest of her profile below, and stay tuned for more Stinky Drinker profiles to come, as the founders get a little personal!

Read the rest of this entry »

Greetings, sports fans!  After a considerable time off from CL blogging, I am back with a brand new project in which I would like to involve each and every one of you.  Wondering if I’m still bitter about Tim Tebow and his Florida Gators taking down my Oklahoma Sooners in the national title game?  Absolutely.  However, I have found a way to channel that aggression in a healthy and constructive way which brings me to the introductions I would like to make in today’s post.

It is in my nature to be….let’s say….overly active.  If my hands and feet are not busy doing something worthwhile, then I can generally be found running around in circles, all the while convincing myself that I am providing a service of some kind.  I think this affliction is referred to as “nervous energy,” and I have it in spades.  This condition is in no way diminished by my obsessive consumption of caffeinated beverages like the iced coffee I am consuming at this very moment, and I have no immediate plans to limit my intake.  I’ve tried — it’s an exercise in futility.

So when I learned about the upcoming Women’s Running Magazine Women’s Half-Marathon coming up this November in downtown St. Pete, I thought, “Okay…this is the perfect outlet for this influx of kinetic energy, and it’s not as daunting as the idea of 26 miles in a full marathon.  Sign me up!”  The event takes place on November 22nd, so in mid-May I printed out a training plan and set my feet in motion.

For exactly one month, I happily executed my training plan alone — running during my lunch breaks and after work….self-motivated and relentless.  But, after each grueling training session…with the heat and mosquitoes and the vomit-inducing smell of low tide and rotting mangroves…I was patting myself on the back alone.  There was no one to exchange high fives with…no one to sweat the glorious sweat of victory or exchange battle cries with.  Sadness and complacency threatened.  Action had to be taken, or the mission would be lost. Read the rest of this entry »