That’s the longest I’ve ever run/hobbled/crawled in my life. Ever. Now only five additional ones on race day!! Hah… Time to puke!
Also, the two Marc by Marc Jacobs clothing items I listed on eBay are still available, and all the money will go to my fundraising efforts…. Click here and here to check out the auctions or here just to donate. :) I’m only $305 away from my fundraising goal!
To be honest, I’ve had a hard time finding the motivation to do much cross-training. I feel like I spend all my time running and I’ve had to struggle to fit in strength training. Of course, I know core strength is super important and that’s something with which I’ve always struggled. (On the other hand, I barely need to do much for my legs ever because apparently I evolved for deadlifting, hah).
Anyways, I’m skipping weight training for a while to change things up and try to regain some enthusiasm, so I’ve been searching YouTube for free body weight workouts. To try to get going this morning I found this “wake-up yoga” routine which was just okay.
It is *really* meant to just wake you up, I guess, because it mostly involved patting and slapping your muscles rather than actively stretching. I preferred the sequence I found yesterday; even though it was gentle it was still a little more active. I like this instructor’s accent though.
Essential pre-workout supplement ;) Double (or triple) espresso!
Fun with chia seeds…
It’s been a while since I posted here — I’ve been busy training and fund-raising ;) — but I’m back!
For a pre-run snack today (had 6 miles on the schedule), I had my usual PB/toast combo and decided to make some chia fresca.
Yes, the chia fresca looks disgusting, admittedly. I first read about it in the book Born to Run, which, in a nutshell, chronicles the journey of a few crazy American distance runners as they attempt to keep up with Mexico’s native Tarahumara Indians.
The Tarahumara regularly run distances equivalent to ultramarathons, often fueled largely by a cornmeal mixture and this drink, which they make with chia seeds, lime juice, and sugar.
I mixed it up based on a few different recipes I found online. The taste was fine — not sweet, although the texture would have weirded me out if I was more squeamish or picky. The seeds soak up water quickly and develop a gummy texture, and kinda float to the bottom of the water so they look like amphibian eggs, quite frankly.
Yesterday, when I planned to run at least 6 miles, I bonked really hard at the 5.5-mile mark, even after eating some caffeinated Shot Bloks around my usual 4ish mile point. Today, I ate my usual toast/peanut butter snack, and drank the chia fresca and felt AWESOME. I didn’t have to eat the Shot Bloks and felt super great all the way through the end of 6 miles. I could have kept going if I had re-fueled at that point, but I forgot to take anything besides water with me.
It could be the placebo effect, the fact that I got more sleep today, or the fact that I did my training run in the evening when I naturally have more energy. Either way, I’ll take it, and I’m going to keep experimenting with all these variables as I continue my half-marathon training.
Other great news: I am more than 70% of my way towards my fundraising goal!! I only need to raise $320 to hit my target. I am reading more and more good news about research on blood cancers, and a friend of mine who was diagnosed earlier this year just got a cancer-free scan after several chemo sessions! And, running is getting easier and easier every day… So, I am pumped to continue this journey.
Nike Free Run +2 … Just ordered these to run in. So excited!! I’ve been wearing low-support shoes/going barefoot for over a year to work up to these guys. I just couldn’t deal with the thought of wearing Vibram Five Fingers AND a fuel belt ;) I’ll post a picture of THAT baby soon.
Training update: Up to about 5 or 6 miles at a time depending on the ()@#*@(#* heat. It’s raining here (AGAIN) and I only have NOW, basically, to fit in a run so I’m gonna hit the cursed treadmill… And YES I watch Chariots of Fire for inspiration when I’m stuck running indoors! hahah! Anyone have any other similar suggestions that are available on Netflix Instant?
Other good news: I’m MORE THAN HALFWAY to my fundraising goal of $1400 to help beat blood (AND OTHER KINDS) of cancers!! Just a little bit more to go! Click here to visit my Team in Training fundraising page, there are cookies in it for you! <3
I guess I need to buy more of these funky dri-fit types of shirts and shorts…. Anything over 30 minutes in this weather and it’s like I bathed in my clothes :( (Also on the wish list: compression socks, but why on earth are they $25-$50 for some damn socks?!)
Team in Training jersey (yes it’s huge). (Taken with instagram)
“Sold” a portable air conditioning unit to someone who clearly really needed it, and my mostly unused hybrid bike to an old friend. (Thanks Monica Suarez!)
Scouring the rest of the house for things of value I could “sell” as well. Maybe this extra Wii….
Now, time to get in a run since I took too many “rest” (i.e. lazy) days this last week. Unfortunately it’s approximately 10000 degrees out so it looks like I’ll be hitting the treadmill (ugh) set on a slight incline to compensate. Think I’ll just go for time — 45ish minutes or one whole episode of Mad Men? So thankful Netflix streams on the iPhone!
Cancer is a an ugly thing. To put it frankly and colloquially, it sucks. Even suckier is that, sadly, it’s on the rise. It pains me to know that if you’re reading this, you likely know, or will know, someone who will struggle with the disease.
In the face of that overwhelmingly gloomy thought, I decided last month to do get off my butt and do something about it. I’ve joined Team in Training and have committed to raising $1400 for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, to fund research to fight these blood cancers — and other types of cancer! More on that in a second.
But beyond that — comically, if you know me from my music and nightlife journalism and related escapades — I’ve committed to running a half-marathon with the team. Seriously.
In January, I’ll be barely crawling my way through the ING Miami Half Marathon, although hopefully by then I’ll have graduated to running shoes I didn’t score for free at a nightclub. (Thanks, Asics, for the pair you gave me at the Vagabond that I’m currently grinding to rubbery stumps.)
So what are blood cancers? They include leukemia, lymphoma, Hodgkin’s disease, and myeloma… Here’s the bad news about them:
…and one of those is my awesome mom, for whom I owe so much of my sense of humor, outlook on life, resourcefulness, and a lot of other things you might like about me if you’re reading this.
She’s kicking NHL’s butt, and a couple other people close to me are currently fighting blood cancers as well. I will be racing in honor of them, and with your help, I would like to help run this disease into the ground.
Would you kindly consider extending some generosity and donating to my cause? Not only do you get to feel warm and fuzzy, but you get to laugh at the thought of me huffing and puffing at 6 a.m. on a Saturday morning. And here are just a few bits of good news about blood cancers:
The Leukemia and Lymphoma society has had a huge hand in helping with a silver lining. Since 1949, LLS has invested more than $750 million in research, and $72 million in the year 2010 alone.
Society-funded research has directly contributed to many breakthrough cancer treatments including chemotherapy, bone marrow and stem cell transplantation, and new, targeted oral therapies like Gleevec.
But that’s not all — the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society also funds research that contributes to many other kinds of cancers, including stomach, breast, and lung cancers. The hope now, is that all blood cancers will be curable by 2015, and the LLS won’t stop until it puts itself out of business.
No donation is too small, all are very much appreciated, and even the cost of just a couple of cocktails on South Beach makes a real difference in a patient’s life. Just click this link to see some concrete examples of how different levels of donation directly help people.
Besides my everlasting, undying gratitude, I’m sweetening the pot, as inspired by friends’ artistic fundraisers on sites like Kickstarter. I’m offering a few tokens, again described at this link, to show my deep appreciation. For instance, if you’ve ever asked me about writing a bio, press release, anything like that, check it out.
But in general, if you’ve ever liked anything I’ve written, done, said, whatever; if you would enjoy goofy pictures of me training at times when I used to go to bed; or if you, like me, just really, really hate cancer, I hope sincerely you’ll contribute to the cause.
Thanks very much for the consideration and I appreciate you even taking the time to read this!
Besides this page, I’ll also be blogging my training experiences, fun workout music, healthy recipes, and everything else here on Tumblr. Thanks very much for reading.
Click here to visit Arielle Castillo’s Team in Training fundraising page.
With deep gratitude,
Arielle
My name is Arielle, I'm a 27-year-old freelance writer from Miami, Florida and I've just undertaken one of the biggest challenges of my life -- I'm running a half-marathon with Team in Training to help beat leukemia, lymphoma, and other blood cancers.
Click here to read more about why I'm doing this and to skip right to my donation page!
If you're wondering more about me, I'm around the web elsewhere at these places:
Official-ish web site: ariellecastillo.com
Twitter: @ariellec
Personal Tumblr: ariellec.tumblr.com
Completely unrelated Tumblr about vintage ska, reggae, and soul (nerd alert): sweetsoulfulsounds.tumblr.com
