“I think it’s part of why I love running. It removes me from the internet for a bit. I listen to music. I can just think about the music for a while and have experiences with that. I can focus on one thing so it is not so fractured. I think it goes back to slowing things down. Slowing things down is a way to spend more time with stuff.”
Brandon Stosuy
Category: Running
SIGN UP FOR THE PRIDE 5K
Just about two months out from the Pride 5K, founded by total bad ass Nikki Hiltz.
Posting this here because not everyone is on Instagram, and so maybe they wouldn’t see this otherwise.
Register here, knowing that you’re helping support the mission of Point of Pride.
Point of Pride is a nonprofit organization that provides financial aid and direct support to trans folks in need of health and wellness care. Their mission is to provide access to gender-affirming resources such as chest binders, breast forms, and other essential items to those who may not have the means to acquire them. Besides simply donating money to Point of Pride, our goal is to make sure that every transgender person knows that there is an entire community of runners who love and support them and believe they belong everywhere they decide to be.
And if you don’t think you can run 3.1 miles, I bet you can walk it, and that counts, especially when the money is going to such a good cause.
SLOW DOWN IN THE HEAT
Some wise words from Coach Bennett from Nike Run about running in the hot weather:
“You don’t get fit by getting heat stroke. You don’t get stronger by being dehydrated. You don’t build endurance by getting sun burned. You don’t get faster by getting hyperthermia. And you don’t earn my respect by putting yourself in dangerous conditions that you are unprepared for. You lose it. Maybe that doesn’t matter to you. But I hope you know that you’ll never run as well as you can by hurting yourself. And that’s what prolonged exercise in extreme temperatures does. It hurts you. It doesn’t make you better. It doesn’t make you stronger. Be smart. be safe. Take care of yourself like you’d take care of someone you care about. Remember that sometimes the best run is no run. If you can do all those things then you’ll be one day closer to running that best run of yours.”
SEVEN YEARS OF RUNNING
Today is my seven year “run-iversary.”
Seven years ago today a good friend texted me from a party, saying someone there challenged him to run a mile in eight minutes (this was seven years ago, so details might be fuzzy). He ran it, though it took longer than eight minutes. I tried it, and it took me 13 minutes, and I had problems walking down stairs for the next week.
According to Strava, since I started in 2016 I’ve gone on 1,419 runs, for 5,160 miles, in 1,006 hours, and climbed 229,692′ in elevation.
Biggest thing I learned? Slow down. Savor every fucking footstep, because one day each place you run will be the last time you ever run it.
Here’s some photos I took from runs over the years:
PAIN
Seen tonight on a nice adventure run. Got dropped off 2.5 miles outside of town, had to run back home on some sketchy roads with no shoulders. Wasn’t too painful, but always on edge when dancing on the pavement with multi-ton vehicles.
IRONTON TRAIL
I guess I really ramped up my half-marathon training, as I ran eight miles yesterday on this gorgeous, if a bit noisy, paved trail through the suburban landscape. The Ironton Rail Trail is about 13-ish miles of paved path.
Part of this trail goes right next to a shooting range. Like, DIRECTLY next to it. It’s sort of terrifying, since, well, this is America.
Continue reading “IRONTON TRAIL”DON’T STOP MOVING
Since I signed up for a half-marathon and haven’t really been training for a half-marathon, I’ve been doing my best to figure out how I’m gonna run this damn thing and not injure myself.
I’ve alway believed in the power of “time on feet,” so I’m prioritizing the amount of active time I’m on my feet. Been trying to walk at least two intentional miles per day, which means breaking a little bit of a sweat.
On this day I walked two miles in the morning, then set off for this adventure.
Basically I ran for one hour up the trail at an easy pace, so I made it about 4.25 miles, stopped my watch, and turned around to walk the same route back to my car.
The walk took me around 90 minutes, but it was great. I could literally see zero humans for half a mile in front of me and behind me, so I took the time to talk to myself and manifest some good shit in the coming months.
Is this a sure-fire plan to make it through the half-marathon? Maybe. But I guess I’m more just training for the hurt, the discomfort. I know I can run the four of six or maybe eight miles at an easy pace, but it’ll be fun to see how everything else comes together, which is why I’m just spending as much time on my feet as I can.
LET’S RUN A HALF MARATHON
I signed up a half marathon at the end of the month. It’s on an abanandoned highway and goes through two pitch-black tunnels. I’m not exactly in half-marathon shape (my PR was in 2018 at about two hours and 20 minutes), but I haven’t… stopped… running.
The plan for this month is to just get used to moving for two and a half hours. I’ve done a lot of hour long runs, and a few 1.5 hour runs, but I’m just gonna try walking for two hours here and there, just to get the bones and feet and back used to the movement. Not looking for fast, just don’t wanna be dead by the end of 13.1 miles.
ADVENTURES IN PALMERTON, PA
For some reason I just love the energy in this area. It’s maybe not the most sceneic, but I love it. There’s a four mile loop up along the side of the mountain here, and it’s a crusher, but I love it so much. Only a few hundred feet of single track, but it’s worth it to me.
POLITICS ON THE TRAILS
Running around Leaser Lake is not enjoyable. It’s a lot of soft grass, and there’s really only two nice single track sections, and the one just sorta.. stops. It’s weird.
But it’s sort of a mindless run, a healthy four mile jaunt, and the scenery really isn’t so bad. The loop is sometimes nice to run into some random people and their dogs, which is always fun.
Not pictured are the two road signs with Patriot Front stickers on ’em. Fuck off, white power assholes. This is exactly why trail running is political, because non-white people don’t get the luxury of “leaving politics out of it.”