Red Bandana: Do Not Run and Play Air Guitar & "Run to Overcome" by Marathoner Meb Keflezighi Reviewed

Do not, under any circumstances, play air guitar while running on a treadmill. You may sing, you may shout, but leave your air guitar skills for karaoke time at your Aunt Suzi's wedding.

For example, you rockers out there have no business trying to see if you can effective pretend to play "Freebird" by Lynyrd Skynyrd. And if I see any of you pointing your invisible electric guitar to the ceiling while moaning, "'Scuze me while I kiss the sky," ala Jimi Hendrix, I will, without hesitation, report you to the treadmill police. It is for your own good.

Why?

Just the other night, rocking out during a five mile run, working through a great selection of music for the evening. The Hollies, The Who, The Romantics, Wild Cherry, Kool & the Gang. Each song was crammed with testosterone, each more high energy than the previous. I was revved up. My gait and cadence were good. I started feeling like a real runner.

But then -- I started to sing. That's OK. This is my basement, not Chicago's L Train. That I cannot sing is not material. In fact, it is good training. New Zealand's famous coach, Arthur Lydiard, used to say one test for running a good aerobic pace is if the runner can talk. Singing is like talking, isn't it? Only moreso.

So I belted out a few tunes. My neighbors knew that "everyone was kung fu fighting" and "Those cats were fast as lightning." They now know, "What I like about you." And they did not need to hear that I was, "Dancing with myself," to know that, in fact, I was.

But then my playlist came to Bachman-Turner Overdrive. You oldies will know them simply as BTO. I'm a product of the 1970s. What could I do? When "Takin' Care of Business" hit my stereo, I was strumming and picking away. I did not limit my air musicianship to guitar. Piano too. There is a bit of boogie-woogie piano in there, and I don't think I missed a note.

Sometimes, I played both instruments at once. Piano on left, guitar on right.

You know the song. It begins:

"You get up every morning
From your 'larm clock's warning
Take the 8:15 into the city
There's a whistle up above
And people pushin', people shovin'"

Trouble was, I was running. Remember? Five miles. On a treadmill. I was strutting more than running (think Chuck Berry meets Mick Jagger meets Peewee Herman), switching between my piano and guitar duties, ripping out the lyrics like they mattered. I slipped and did a George Jetson.

I'm exaggerating some. It was a good run, I did sing to most of the songs. And I did play a little air guitar. Who wouldn't? However, I really did catch myself slipping not paying attention to the task at hand. I wasn't hurt. I might have been.

Pay attention while running. That is the entire point of this column today. Have a great time and feel even better as you do it, but never forget that hitting the wall behind you, or twisting an ankle is a bad idea. Be careful out there (and in your basement).

The Complete Running Playlist
1) Long Cool Woman (In A Black Dress), The Hollies
2) Happy Jack, The Who
3) What I Like About You, The Romantics
4) Play That Funky Music, Wild Cherry
5) Turning Japanese, Vapors
6) Takin' Care of Business, Bachman-Turner Overdrive
7) Celebration, Kool and The Gang
8) Kung Fu Fighting, Carl Douglas
9) Pinball Wizard, The Who
10) You Really Got Me, The Kinks
11) Feels Like The First Time, Foreigner
12) She's The One, Bruce Springsteen
13) Communication Breakdown, Led Zeppelin
14) Dancing With Myself, Billy Idol

Run to Overcome: Inspirational Story About Marathoner Meb Keflezighi

Meb humbly relates his life in this readable autobiography. He takes us through his childhood in Eritrea, a country not quite twice the population of Chicago. He describes facing soldiers and war, and how he saw death as a young boy. Through college at UCLA as well as his early career as a runner, we learn the life of an elite running is often difficult.

His beloved friend and fellow runner Ryan Shay dies while racing. Eritrean friends are murdered just before he visits them. A grocery store he owned with his family was robbed by armed thieves. His racing doesn't go well, and his income drops. His faith grew just the same.

He perseveres, and draws the reader into a world of running and and international culture.

Overall, "Run to Overcome" is honest and inspiring.
(full review on my website)

——————-
Writer Anthony Trendl loves BBQs, folk music and porches. He looks to running as he battles midlife and his mid-section. Find out more: http://anthonytrendl.com

For more about my running adventures, see A Runner’s Dilemma (workout details, videos and more): http://runnersdilemma.blogspot.com

The Red Bandana: Finding Fitness Through the Joy of Running

A Thirsty Four Miles

4.0 miles run (36:52 - 9:13/mile)
0.25 miles walked (15:00/mile)

total: 4.25 miles
course: home treadmill

Coach Jim Spivey offered this advice when I asked him how to transition from getting in shape to maintaining fitness, but without speedwork and all that: Change my distance and pace. Simple? Sure. Obvious? Well, yeah. Was I doing it? Not intentionally, but falling into a rut is easy.

So I ran four miles about 45 seconds per mile slower than I had been running five miles. Different muscles, different strides length, different arm motion. The cadence is all different. It is tiring.

Now, a late dinner which will include a cold Bass Ale.

Bass Ale 16oz Viking Pint Glass - Set of 4 * Bass Ale Black Hat

Haile Gebrselassie Retires? 3.25 Miles

3.25 miles run (28:40 - 8:49/mile)
0.50 miles walk (15:00/mile)

total: 3.75 miles
course: home treadmill

Today, I caught most of the New York Marathon. Readers of this blog will know I was keenly interested in Jared "the Subway Guy" Fogle (post) and Meb Keflezighi (post) who ran it. Jared finished in 5:13:28, not bad for a guy who weighed 425 not that long ago. Meb, last year's winner, finished sixth in 2:11:30.

Gebre Gebremariam of Ethiopia won it in 2:08:14, but the guy I really hoped would shine, Haile Gebrselassie, dropped out after 16 miles. Knee injury. He holds the world record with a screaming fast 2:03:59. 

Sadly, Gebrselassie's injury indicated a deeper knee problem, and he announced his retirement. I'm a fan. How couldn't I be? Fast in everything from the 5K to the marathon, he's simply the man. No one ever gets to say, "I'm the man," after a race because any runner worth his salty, sweat-filled face knows that it is Gebrselassie.

So I am bummed. Chicago Bulls great Michael Jordan retired and the NBA mourned, but Jordan had peers. Gebrselassie had none. More humble than Muhammed Ali, and just as quietly charismatic, he is the greatest running has known. He is to long runs what Sebastian Coe was to middle distance, what, in time, Usain Bolt will become.

Hopefully, his injury will not impede regular life, that he can still stay fit, and that he can somehow remain connected with long distance running.

In other news, I had a nice little run. Tight, tired legs. Decided to cut the distance. Tomorrow is up for grabs. Even if I am tired, I want to remain in the habit of running at least five days a week. If I must rest, so be it. The body knows what workout schedules do not.

The Greatest: The Haile Gebrselassie Story

Running Music Playlist

An non-exhaustive list of music I listen while I run. Your suggestions?

All links head to iTunes.
Great Running Music

• Takin' Care of Business Bachman-Turner Overdrive
• Radar Love Golden Earring
• Do Wah Diddy Diddy Manfred Mann
• Eye of the Tiger Survivor
• Gonna Fly Now (Theme from "Rocky") Bill Conti
• Another One Bites the Dust Queen
• The Final Countdown Europe
• Born to Run Bruce Springsteen
• Walking On Sunshine Katrina and the Waves
• Wanna Be Startin' Somethin' Michael Jackson
• I'm So Excited The Pointer Sisters
• I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles) The Proclaimers
• Scatman (Ski-Ba-Bop-Ba-Dop-Bop) [Extended Radio Version] Scatman John
• Blue Collar Man Styx
• Right Now Van Halen
• I Like to Move It (Reel 2 Real Dub) Reel 2 Real featuring The Mad Stuntman
• Whoomp! (There It Is) [Radio Edit] Tag Team
• Any Way You Want It Journey

Stiff But Faster 4.5 Miles

4.5 miles run (39:05 - 8:41/mile)

0.5 miles walk (15:00/mile)

total: 5.0 miles

course: home treadmill

I'm hungry. A plate of Hungarian goulash would hit the spot, but it is 10:00 pm as I write. Instead, I had a tangerine, two cups of sugarless lemonade, and a protein bar. No, it doesn't make up for it.

I'm in this partly to get fit, and that goulash will wait. There's none in the fridge, so that helps. I'm seeing minor progress in the fitness department, but not enough to say things have settled. A few pounds. A couple big meals and I'll gain it all back.

My legs feel stiff. The last few days, and the week before, have been more and faster than I have been doing. I know I need to just keeping getting down to business and putting in a few miles and watching the quanity on my plate and the rest will follow.

I love Johnny Cash. The song has nothing to do with running, except that I'm listening to it as I write. Still gets me, this song.

Don't Take Your Guns to Town - Johnny Cash

Red Bandana: Lost and Found: Subway's Jared Fogle and Us

Read this week's column too! Do Not Run and Play Air Guitar & "Run to Overcome" by Marathoner Meb Keflezighi Reviewed

Do you remember Jared Fogle? He is the guy who lost 245 pounds by eating Subway sandwiches. Losing that kind of weight is amazing and inspiring. That he ate at Subway, while true and great marketing for the sandwich chain, is only part of the story. The real reason he lost weight is that he disciplined his portions, and chose carefully what was in those portions.

What has happened since? He gained 40 lbs., and, apparently, relost it, according to Advertising Age. Better yet, Subway, realizing the opportunity before them, signed poor Jared up for the New York Marathon. They matched him up with Olympic gold medalist swimmer Michael Phelps, for NFL (New York Giants) defensive end Michael Strahan, and, the winner of last year's NYC Marathon Meb Keflezighi. Good company, to be sure, but 26.2 miles is just as long for famous people as it is for we unknowns.

Jared, if successful in finishing the race, will not only weigh less, but by merit of the hundreds of miles he ran in his training, he will be fitter. That is worth a footlong meatball sandwich with extra cheese, in my opinion.

So what if Jared fell off the wagon and gained a few pounds. A big deal? Not at all. Think long-term, and that includes refocusing on the goals at hand. Running head-first in a few too many cheeseburgers could happen to any of us. Success is what happens the next day, and the day after that.

Keep a Running Journal
Are you having trouble keeping yourself accountable? Keep track of what you are doing. This tool can help you remain encouraged as you look back over a few months and realize you are making progress.

A few years back, after a long layoff from running and plenty of fresh flab around my mid-section, I read in "Runner's World" the idea of a running blog. In 2007, I started one, "A Runner's Dilemma." That was 600 posts ago, through my ups and downs of trying to stick to getting fit. Others who in the same boat read it, and let me know how they are doing. It helps us both.

Most posts reflect that day's workout. How many miles I ran, walked, how fast I went, and the total, plus a comment about the run. If I run outside, I include the weather. Sometimes I include things impacting my running, like an inspirational quote or video. Mostly, it helps me watch my progress.

Similarly, try keeping a spreadsheet for each day. Mine is simple. It includes columns for my weight goal, my actual weight, my resting pulse rate, my miles run for the preceding seven days, how many miles I ran, and how many miles I walked. It keeps me honest.

I figure the goal weight by looking at how many pounds I want to lose compared to what day I want to weigh in. In the downloadable chart I have included on my website, I assume you want to lose 10 lbs by Valentine's Day. You have 107 days to get the job done, and I average it all out through a formula. You can change all of it to suit your own situation and goals.

Running Playlist Song of the Week
"Bad to the Bone" by George Thorogood and the Destroyers, 1982

I'm a car singer. When it is just me, I turn it up and sing at the top of my lungs. This one brings out my inner blues man. As a running song, it carries a strong tempo, a hard beat, and twice the attitude found in anything Katy Perry sings.

"On the day I was born, the nurses all gathered 'round.
And they gazed in wide wonder, at the joy they had found.
The head nurse spoke up, and she said leave this one alone.
She could tell right away, that I was bad to the bone.
Bad to the bone
Bad to the bone
B-B-B-B-Bad to the bone
B-B-B-B-Bad
B-B-B-B-Bad
Bad to the bone."

——————-
Writer Anthony Trendl loves BBQs, folk music and porches. He looks to running as he battles midlife and his mid-section. Find out more: http://anthonytrendl.com/

For more about my running adventures, see A Runner’s Dilemma (workout details, videos and more): http://runnersdilemma.blogspot.com/

The Red Bandana: Finding Fitness Through the Joy of Running

More on Jared Fogle's Marathon Journey
http://www.subwayfreshbuzz.com/jareds_journey
http://adage.com/article?article_id=142076

Toying Around With 5.25 Miles

5.253 miles run (45:53 - 8:44/mile)
0.509 miles walk (15:00/mile)

total: 5.762 miles
course: home treadmill

One of those good runs, the day after one of those good runs. That's two good runs in a row, though I am still shooting for one good month in a row. A month is made up of a 31-day string of such days, with proper rest days interspersed. I'm getting enough rest and more.

My last 31 days, including today, is 50.7 miles. 71.42 if I can count the walking days. And I will. But I know running and walking aren't the same.

Just noticed Toy Story 3 is out. Have you seen it? Once again, it is about the spirit of play. A good run, at least at my level, is all play. Singing while I run, thinking about good things, and looking forward to a protein bar and lemonade after the run. These things do taste better after five miles. Far better than they do after one mile.

Run to Overcome: An American Story of Marathoner Meb Keflezighi's Life

American marathoner Meb Keflezighi's last name is hard to say. Talk among runners, and mention, "Meb," and that's usually enough. "Run to Overcome" is likely to help it become a household name.

His claim to fame is his Silver Medal for the marathon, won at the 2004 Olympics, or his 2:09:15 time while winning the 2009 New York City Marathon. But that's not why this book matters. Other runners have run faster. Haile Gebrselassie owns the world record in 2:03:59. Cheering on Meb comes easier once you know the back story. In the midst of being all about a runner's life, it isn't about running. It is a Horatio Alger type story of rags-to-riches, full of hard times, hard work, and the blessing of God.

Like many immigrants, Meb's family left home to remain safe from war, and to find a better life. And like those families, things were difficult. And in the face of adversity, he found motivation.

When Tyndale House Publishers sent me this book, asking for a review, I wondered suspiciously if it would be like so many autobiographies with a "look at all I have achieved" attitude. Better written than expected, Meb humbly relates his life. He takes us through his childhood in Eritrea, a country not quite twice the population of Chicago. He describes facing soldiers and war, and how he saw death as a young boy. He tells how his parents taught him to trust God despite all of this.

After emigrating through Italy to the United States, his his American teachers made an impact, he says, as he mentions a note he still owns from a teacher encouraging him as an excellent student. His seventh grade PE class teacher had him run a mile, and his first time out, Meb ran a 5:20.

Meb enters UCLA, relating running and academic struggles, though ultimately succeeds at both.

Challenges continued, however, after college. First, does represent America or his home country? Injuries. Bad races. Psychologically beat up, he learns to dig deep and beyond whatever froze him, train smart to stay healthy, and find a way to win.

He admits when he ran one televised 10,0000 meter final, his girlfriend would be watching, "I wanted to impress her." He won by 19 seconds. He eventually marries her.

More races, more ups and down are found as Meb matures in his running career. His beloved friend Ryan Shay dies while racing. Eritrean friends are murdered just before he visits them. A grocery store he owned with his family was robbed by armed thieves. His racing doesn't go well, and his income drops. His faith grew just the same.

He applauds the many people he competes against, and recognizes his friends. Throughout the pages are pullout quotes by coaches, friends and runners who all repeat the quality of his character. Olympic legend Joan Benoit writes similarly in her brief foreword, reiterating it is an honor to call Meb her friend.

Overall, "Run to Overcome" is honest and inspiring. Runners will appreciate the race and training details, but nonrunners will find it readable. I fully recommend "Run to Overcome" by Meb Keflezighi.

Anthony Trendl

Sweating, Books and 5.0 Miles

5.000 miles (8:57, 8:57, 8:57, 8:34, 8:17)
0.506 miles (15:00/mile)

total: 5.506 miles
course: home treadmill


Fun, good sweat tonight. I thought about getting through the winter fitter than I am now. I am overall feeling better, knowing if I stick with it, each month will feel successively better.
 
After a good run, and this is odd to say, but my mind is more relaxed. Any of you who know me know I am working eight cylinders at once, distracted, curious, chasing ideas and so on. I happen to also love to read, and, after a run like to tonight, I can read with focus.
 
Reading at the moment includes Higdon's Marathoning book, and some bios about the presidents. Anyone remember those booklets John Hancock Mutual Life Insurance published in 1976? I have a small stack.