March 2012

How to Read Train Like a Mother by Maxine

Also from our FB wall: This is one excited mama (Jolene in N.C.) with our latest book

Maxine, a mom training for her 7th half-marathon (who happens to be the chica who won the NordicTrack C900 treadmill from our giveaway last year), posted this on our Facebook wall last week. We’ve heard from some ladies, like Billie on Twitter, who have already finished Train Like a Mother: How to Get Across Any Finish Line – and Not Lose Your Family, Job, or Sanity; but if you haven’t, we think Maxine suggests a good system.

  1. Get some snacks (reading about running burns calories, too, right?).
  2. Open book and immediately go to the part about training for the race you are currently training for. Read every word. Make mental adjustments to the rest of your training schedule.
  3. Read all the other training plans. Mentally add races to your already booked year of running because you want to try all of the plans.
  4. Go to the beginning and begin reading. Skip the gray parts that you don’t feel apply to you.
  5. Run into your husband’s office, interrupt his work, and demand he listen as you read parts out loud. (You are laughing so hard you can hardly get through it. He—a male, non-runner—doesn’t get it.)
  6. Return to couch; get more snacks.
  7. Message your running buddy that you found the training plan you would like to use for this fall’s marathon.
  8. Ignore the laundry, dishes, and the nearing dinner hour; keep reading.
  9. Cry while reading about running injuries.
  10. Get to the end.
  11. Go back and read the gray parts that could possibly be relevant to you because you don’t want the book to be over.
  12. Give in and read the part about pushing strollers even though your youngest is 22 years old. (You may have grandkids at some point.)
  13. Read the dictionary slowly because you don’t want the book to end.
  14. Email SBS and Dimity, asking when their next book is coming out.
  15. Mope.

How ’bout you: What’s your game-plan for reading our orange tome?

So Many Choices!

Giddy from the debut of Train Like a Mother, the mother runners discuss (Dimity might even say, “pontificate”) the options to consider when going for a run: Indoors or out? Which route to follow? Solo or with a pal? Silence, playlist, podcast–or the steady beat of a metronome.

Along the way, discover how Dimity almost loses the podcast’s FCC “clean” rating, and hear her tell about her recent massive wipeout. And excuse Sarah for misquoting “Rain Man.” It’s 82, not 84. She quickly realized her error….but figured it would seem neurotic to correct herself on air. She knows her husband, Jack, will never let her live down the mistake (neither will her producer – make sure to listen to the very end!).

[audio:http://www.podtrac.com/pts/redirect.mp3/podcasts.pagatim.fm/shows/so_many_choices_101545011.mp3]

*If you’re digging our podcasts, we’d be super-grateful if you’d take a minute (because we *know* you have so many to spare!) to write a review on iTunes. Many thanks.

**Also, the quickest way to get our podcasts is to subscribe to the show via iTunes. Clicking this link will automatically download the shows to your iTunes account. It doesn’t get any simpler than that!

***Or visit our great friends at Stitcher and subscribe to our podcasts there. Stitcher has been nominated as one of the best Apps ever.

Train Like a Mother: Favorite Crosstraining Activity

Couldn’t have said it better myself.

I love to run, but I hate getting injured. Which is why Triathlete Like a Mother might be our next book. Kidding, but seriously, giving your legs a break from the pounding is a good way to keep both your legs and mind fresh. Here are some ways other mother runners get their sweat on when they’re not running. (We opted to leave this one out of Train Like a Mother because we had a similar one in Run Like a Mother. Gotta keep it fresh, right?)

Take it From a Mother: What’s your favorite way to crosstrain?

“Kickboxing is great cardio and strength training in one.  It also requires so much concentration that I can’t dwell on work, family, or any of the other stresses in my life.”
—Alisa (hates bibs pinned to her shirt) 

“Swimming. It’s easy on sore muscles.”
—Jennifer (weirdest thing spotted on a run: a snake that just ate its dinner)

“Cross-country skiing, but that only works in the winter.”
—Robin (the two things she and her husband argue about: money and who gets to run that day)

“I like mountain biking and hiking because I did them for years prior to running. But I’ve started getting grumpy going uphill on my bike because, unlike running, it’s hard to slow down without falling off.”
Terri (also gets crabby when her husband, joining her for the last few miles of a longer run, is cheerful and chatty when she is struggling)

“Spinning. It’s hard enough to feel like a good workout, and I like the intervals.”
—Kelly (must do long runs with a partner or she’d talk herself out of the pace or the distance at least half the time)

“Kettlebells.  When you’re slinging around a 25-pound cannon ball, you’re a badass.”
—Caryn (runs the Race for the Cure annually because, “it is one of the most moving events I’ve ever been to.”)

“After 30 minutes on the bike, my legs feel like Jell-O, but my plantar fasciitis-riddled feet get a break.”
—Sue (on her to-do list: updating her kids’ photo albums, making a special dinner from scratch for her husband, getting to the dermatologist, doing speedwork)

“Soccer.  It gets out my aggression better than running does.”
—Claire (pays attention to her form after enduring physical therapy for Piriformis syndrome)

“Vinyasa Yoga: cardio, strength training, flexibility, and endurance all in one.”
—Deborah (favorite race distance: 10K. “Once I get past eight miles, it’s just not as much fun.”)

“I’m a Zumba freak. I go two or three times a week. I love dancing, I love the music, and I get a good overall workout for my legs, arms and abs.”
—Kendra (loves seeing all sorts of body types at races. “I think, man, if they can do it, surely I can finish.”)

“Chasing after two-year-olds who don’t sit still.”
—Jennifer (posts her runs on Facebook. “I’m sure it’s annoying to some, but I like my friends knowing if I’m slacking. I know I’ve inspired some people too.”)

“The elliptical machine. I have one at home, so I can yell at the kids while I’m on it.”
—Angie (can’t run the first day of her period. “It feels like I’m having labor pains.”)

Now we’re taking it to you mothers: what’s your favorite way to crosstrain?

Seeking Help

I’ve been in denial for a long time. But I’m finally getting help–thanks to the encouragement, advice, and support of my three running partners. Heidi gave me the name of someone who helped her; Molly let me know that realizing I needed help was a powerful–and positive–first step; and Sheila shared empathy and advice. It was hard for me to admit I had a problem: I’m stoic, and I thought I could soldier through. Or I thought the problem would go away as time passed. But my BRF’s made me realize it’s okay to ask for help, and to see a professional.

I don’t have a problem with cigarettes, booze, methamphetamine, gambling, or online porn. It’s with…parenting. I finally decided our kids, and our family unit, deserve better parenting skills than Jack and I possess. We love our children with all our hearts, but we are running on fumes in the patience and parenting departments.

Wait, since I’m writing this post, let me switch to the singular pronoun. I/me: I’m owning this behavior. I lose my patience way too easily–and far too often–with my children. I yell at them way too much. I rarely give them my undivided attention. I use what can only be deemed negative language (e.g. “Stop being so annoying!”). I say, “stop…” and “don’t….” countless times in a day. Every night, when my kids argue over who gets to sit next to me at the dinner table and my blood boils, all I think is, “Why do they want to sit next to me–I’m so mean.” When Daphne tells me repeatedly, “Mama, you’re so beautiful,” I feel like an ugly failure.

So I’ve waved the white flag, and Jack and I are seeing a therapist on Tuesday. Insurance won’t cover it, and we don’t really have the “spare” funds to pay for this expense. But I finally realized the long-term cost to our family would be so much greater. And I’m grateful that being honest with my running partners has brought me to this place. I hope the next steps for me and our family can be as impactful.

 

 

Tell Me Tuesday: Organizing Your Workout Drawer

Before: what my drawer o’ spandex usually looks like.

 I do not pretend to be a neat person, at least when it comes to my clothing. Keeping my drawers neat is about 287th on my to-do list, which means it never gets done. Except maybe twice a year, usually when everything else feels out-of-control, and I crave some semblance of order. Then I’ll  fold.

Because I fold so infrequently, I try to edit my clothes as I go along. I rarely heed the if-you-haven’t-worn-it-in-a-year-toss-it rule with my “regular” clothes (read: tees and jeans). Fortunately, I don’t have to apply that rule to my workout garb since I do wear it all at least once a year. But that doesn’t mean some of it shouldn’t go.

So I dumped out the drawer on my bed and started folding. A few fave things definitely couldn’t go.

I got this at the 2007 Nike Women’s Marathon. Despite red being my least favorite color, I {{will always heart}} this shirt. I wear it to the gym on days I need to convince myself I am badass.

Two prereqs for tanks for me: must be long enough to cover my belly and must have a pocket in the back. This does both–and has been with me for four years.

And these shorts are also my besties. Bought these when I committed to 2007 marathon. (Note red trim: maybe I do subconsciously like red more than I pretend to.) And I love that these have a back pocket and are ultra lightweight.

But a few things could bite the dust.

This bra actually did well in Runner’s World testing last year–it’s great for people with larger or smaller than normal rib cages–but mine is a fairly standard size. So putting this on isn’t worth the sweat it takes.

These too-small socks have been flipping my toe the bird for 3 years. I kid you not.

I also tossed one pair of capris and one skirt; let’s just say the linings had seen much, much better days and leave it at that. No visual necessary.

So how did I organize? I won’t go all Real Simple on you, but I did do a few things:
1. I put tops that I only wear to yoga or Pilates with the pants I wear only to those things. They’re now in my closet. (Nutty, right?)
2. I took a cue from my very neat husband, and rolled all my bike shorts and capris like this:

Capris and bike shorts, all (relatively) compact. Don’t look too close, or you’ll spot dog hairs.

3. I decided that I couldn’t have all my bottoms in one drawer, even though I like everything in one drawer so when I go to lay out my clothes the night before a workout, my effort is minimal. So I put my bike shorts in their own drawer, a very stubborn one that requires both a delicate touch and patience to open. We’ll see how long that lasts.
4. The only true wild card? This lovely constellation of bra pads. I saved them, but they’re stacked up in my undies drawer right now. I’m still on the fence if they’re worth the effort.

I love that these pads hide the headlights, but I hate how they fall out in the wash. And how they require time and–again–a delicate touch to replace.

So the title of this post was a little misleading. I didn’t really tell how what to do with your clothes; I only tossed a few holey socks, a too-much-work bra, and some bottoms that no amount of detergent could save. (I’d advise you to do the same.) But I bet you innovative mother runners have some much better advice: How do you organize your running clothes?

Because at the end of all my work, my drawer looked like this.Fine, but not super crazy neat–and it’ll be a disaster again by Friday. Promise.

Train Like a Mother Coach is in the House

Dimity and Sarah talk training with Christine Hinton, the coach and mom of two who created eight of the nine plans in Train Like a Mother, which debuts March 20. Coach Hinton lets you know it’s okay to bail on an occasional workout; clues you in to must-do sessions; tells you how to wake up your fast-twitch muscles; and talks about why you don’t want to “race” your workouts. Also in this info-packed podcast, Dimity tosses out the word, “ennui.” Look out!

[audio:http://www.podtrac.com/pts/redirect.mp3/podcasts.pagatim.fm/shows/amr_030812_101519871.mp3]

*If you’re digging our podcasts, we’d be super-grateful if you’d take a minute (because we *know* you have so many to spare!) to write a review on iTunes. Many thanks.

**Also, the quickest way to get our podcasts is to subscribe to the show via iTunes. Clicking this link will automatically download the shows to your iTunes account. It doesn’t get any simpler than that!

***Or visit our great friends at Stitcher and subscribe to our podcasts there. Stitcher has been nominated as one of the best Apps ever.

Go to Top