Category Archives: All

Appetite for… Progression?

Posted on by Posted in All, Fitness, Training: Cycling, Training: Running, Training: Swimming 1 Comment

Over the last week my appetite has become ravenous. I find myself walking to work, drooling at all the cafes, in some sort of glazed over zombie-like shuffle.

“Will I make it to work, where my precious oatmeal lay waiting for me to devour it and live another day?”

“Will I have to throw myself through the door of some unsuspecting cafe and demand eggs, cutting everyone else in line off like a jerk?”

“Perhaps, at my last waning moment I will resort to some crazy cannibalistic behavior and eat my left arm, since I’m a righty?”

These thoughts have been going through my head because for the first time in my life my training program is through the roof and I’m loving every minute of it! Coach S has me really gearing up my volume and relaying all kinds of data to her. Heart rate, cadence, pace, times… it kinda feels like a science project…

This is what happened this week so far, explaining my hunger. I am leaving details out because I don’t want to give away Coach’s planning or secret formulas, but you get the idea.

Monday: AM Run, PM Swim

Tuesday: AM Bike, PM Run

Wednesday: AM Swim

Thursday: PM Bike

Friday: AM Run

I feel really good, especially since this kind of schedule is starting to become a bit more routine for me and falling into place so to speak. I never ran, biked or swam this much EVER. I ran like once a week (if it was sunny) and biked a couple times because I drank to much coffee those days.

Since I enjoy blogs with photos, I have included a few below (however unrelated they are to the above text) to entertain you.

LOOK! I got new goggles! I test them Saturday, look out sharks, I will eat you.

Last weekend Abbe and I went down to DC. This is a shot I took as we made our way to cheer the National Marathon runners. Pretty cool right?

Cherry Blossoms and an Egyptian obelisk.

 

 

 

RACE REPORT: 055 NYC Half Marathon

Posted on by Posted in All, Race Reports, Running 15 Comments

The NYC Half Marathon is one of my favorite races. Home turf… good distance… and you get to run down the middle of Times Square without any tourists in your way! Last year I PR’d with a 1:20: 48 and this year I wanted to break that number (at least by a couple seconds).

—

Wednesday before the race was set off with me having a voracious bout of food poisoning or some sort of stomach flu. I staying home from work and tried not to die. I couldn’t drink water (and keep it down) until 7PM. I love water.

You have never felt more alive and happy than you do the day after food poisoning. I may as well have been in the NYC version of The Sound of Music while walking to work Thursday. Lookout Julie Andrews!

Thursday was also St. Patrick’s Day, which happens to be my favorite holiday ever. Our office sits on 5th Avenue so I get front row seats to the parade every year which delights me to no end. After work Abbe and I had planned to find a quiet bar to have a drink, then get some sushi. This is also her favorite holiday as well.

What say you?! No Irish Pub?!

NYC St. Patrick’s Day Explained: From noon until midnight my lovely town gets invaded by people from New Jersey (I’m from NJ so I can say that), Long Island and other strange places. These people disrespect my town and the holiday by being complete drunken morons, peeing on the streets and annoying me. It becomes impossible to enter ANY irish pub because they are packed. I spend a lot of my normal calendar year frequenting irish pubs anyway, so it doesn’t bother me to go experience a different food culture on this holiday.

Friday was 70 and sunny, strictly amazing. For lunch I wolfed down an entire fresh cut turkey sub (and a pickle) that upset my stomach big time! I wasn’t over my stomach flu from Wednesday and this set it off again.

That night I met Abbe and her parents for a drink before heading to my friend Colette’s birthday party. She had booked the entire roofdeck of the hotel ink48! It sits on the water and has fantastic views of the city. She totally lucked out with the weather! There were some 150 people dancing and socializing until 11PM, a great party. At 10, I left to meet Abbe and Erica Sara in Hell’s Kitchen to discuss the race game plan as far as cheering goes.

Saturday (per Coach Sonja’s instructions) I did ‘Race Pace Intervals’ around the Park to get my system rev-ed up for Sunday. It was a beautiful morning and I felt awesome. I had not eaten anything since Friday at lunch because my stomach was all wonky, but I was doing just fine.

Later, I biked down to meet my friend Brian at the East 6th Street Track and train his 10 year old daughter. She wants to make the track team, so we went over some basic stuff like form, and how to do quick bursts. I also taught her race strategy and the concept of ‘Running Through the Pain.’ I am really excited to see how she does.

That night me and Abbe, her parents, and friends Jason, Jordan and Katie (who is running the Half Mary too) met at Bar Baresco to have pre-race dinner. My tummy was feeling okay at this point so I had some pasta to get my carbo-load on. The food was actually quite fantastic. Seeing as how all of us were waking up early, whether it be to race or spectate, we took off at 10 to get some rest.

RACE DAY

Waking up at 6AM, I had severe indigestion and heartburn. Aimlessly wandering around my apartment I finally got some coffee going. Juts as it started to percolate and the aroma entered the air I got very nauseous and ran to the bathroom. I was very sick and (without going into to many details) I basically emptied my stomach… dinner, water, vitamins, a necklace I thought I had lost…

Afterword, I was really shaky and extremely worried about racing. As Abbe was sipping her Cafe Bustelo, I secretly wanted her to say, “No way mister, you aren’t racing now!” and then I would go back to bed and happily sleep until noon. Instead she said, “I bet a good run will knock that flu right out of you!” and with that we set off to the start.

We met Katie on 3rd and 83rd and walked north, my request was that we find me some bananas STAT!

At my baggage truck I finished eating my single banana and got ready, helping the gals with their pins and bibs. Just then, a woman came up and asked if we were ‘running the marathon’ today and before I could think of something witty to say my gaze went past her to the sealed up UPS baggage truck ready to take off! I booked over to the driver and begged him to wait! Running back and jamming all my crap into my bag then sprinting back I handed it to him thanking him dearly! I honestly have no idea what I would do being left with a full backpack? Cry?

I said goodbye to them and ran up to my corral as it was closing. Weaving into the crowd and moving towards the front it had the usual smell of Ben Gay and farts. Normally I run into some of the Runner Army, but today I saw no familiar faces. After a few words from the usual crew and the National Anthem we prepared for flight.

As we started the race it was pretty packed up front. It always amazes me at a race of this caliber how long it takes for the lead corral to thin out and get situated. In my head I knew I had to break a 6:11 pace in order to beat last years time. This would continue to haunt me all day.

SIDENOTE: When I start a run I know within the first mile or so if it’s going to be good or bad. Today was going to be bad and probably not my day to PR. I would love to hear a few other runner’s opinions on this.

The bottom half of the Park was lined with cheering spectators, making the pain ease up a little and my spirits soar.

Moving up the West Side I started having to deal with all the hills. The plus side, was that I only had to deal with them one time. I saw Erica Sara, Jess and Tavia cheering me on at 86th Street which rocked, especially because it was right before the mighty Harlem Hill.

Speaking of which, I moved up the first half of the hill rather smoothly, keeping my form in tact and anticipating a quick descent. We were all in single file by this point in the race so there was a lot of leapfrog passing going on. Using the downhill to my advantage I just let go (keeping control) and barreled forward. At the bottom I made my decision to have my first drink of the race. “Martini, dry please.” All they had was Gatorade neat. I took it anyway and chased it with a water.

Running up the second half of Harlem Hill wasn’t as pleasant (if you would call the first have pleasant?) at all. It was during these moments I started to have doubts about even finishing the run. This put a dreadful fear into my mind because I never think like this (ONE) and (TWO) I had like 9 more miles of this monkey business left. Mile splits thus far: 6:19, 6:01, 6:04, 6:20.

One thing that lifted my spirits was knowing that the hardest part of the course by far had just passed. That got me thinking about a song by GH and I thought to myself, as the pain in my legs, stomach and core were knocking around, ‘All things must pass…’

Somewhere around 86th Street on the East I heard (as I was passing some volunteers) “Goooooo Baker!” It was Kelly! Then, in the 60’s I saw Susan, who actually yelled at me, but I needed it. Go Runner Army! We are everywhere…

SIDENOTE: I had pulled down my calf sleeves as my legs were hot. I soon realized I looked like I was part of the cast from Flashdance and freaked out a little.

As I made the turn onto 7th Avenue and out of the Park I felt a huge sense of relief, knowing that I was ⅔’s of the way through the race. Miles 5-8 were as follows 6:07, 6:36, 6:34, 6:25… definitely slowing down.

My favorite part of this race is being able to run through Times Square, so I was trying to ignore my body’s signals that death was near, and really take it all in. These 2 miles are also downhill so I was trying to make up for lost time by crushing it. Perhaps not the best idea, but neither is puking before a half mary. As I turned right onto 42nd Street I was actually hungry and took that as a good sign! I hadn’t had an appetite for a few days! Woo hoo, it’s goo time! I bit into my ‘Espresso Love’ Gu and was far from in love with it. It did, however, fill up my stomach with some sort of synthetic nutrient that was going to propel me though the next 3 miles. Mile splits: 5:46, 6:02.

Turning onto the West Side Highway we were confronted with a bone chilling wind. I tried to stay to the right as the runners around me were passing. This would normally aggravate me, but I was not concerned with my time at this point, I was busy just pushing forward. These next 2 miles would be my worst with splits of 7:16 and 7:33.

I saw Lady Southpaw and her band somewhere along the road and she gave me a shout out which was awesome. Then, I saw Maura and Brian at their ‘High Five Station!’ Totally cool guys, seriously!

A few runners were encouraging me to push on (remember, all of us were familiar with one another from running in the same pack for so long.)

I don’t know what happened to me on the last mile but I decided I was going to pick it up and finish this thing. I straightened my posture, took a deep breath and quickened my pace.

Cruising into the finish I saw Eliz shouting at me and a few others! I crossed with a time of 1:27:35 which is actually my 3rd best time out of 6 half marys.

Sex/
Age		 Bib Overall 

Place

 Age
Place		 Finish
Time		 Pace/
Mile		 AG %
M33 228 558 100 01:27:25 6:41 67.86 %

I got my medal and silver superhero cape and pressed forward to get my bag. I ran into my running pals Robert and Antonio who had fantastic races and both PR’d. Congrats fellas!

My next mission was coffee. With that in hand I stood and cheered at the finish waiting for Abbe and Katie. They both finished in just over 2 hours! Fantastic! After we all headed uptown and had a huge breakfast. That wasn’t the real party though…

After cleaning up, all of us went to watch the College Basketball games and have some beers and hearty food. There were 20 of us, including my little brother Jeff and his girlfriend (fiance) who had gotten engaged the night before! Congrats you two!

Although I was bummed out I didn’t PR my half mary time, I was happy to have finished after such a rough start. My stomach flu was totally kicked from my system too! Running cures everything!

PS= Thanks to EVERYONE who came out and cheered us on. I heard my name many times and if I didn’t shout you out here on the report it’s only because I was delirious when I saw you!

The MAF Test

Posted on by Posted in All, Fitness, Training: Running 2 Comments

My new life of being coached has kept me very busy! I am really starting to love it and it is becoming more routine, all the pieces falling into place. Remember, prior to this I had zero structure to my workouts, I just did them when it was sunny.

Saturday, Sonja had me do a MAF (Maximum Aerobic Fitness) Test. The instructions were simple enough, run 6 miles on the track at a Heart Rate of 150-155.

I rode my bike down to the East River Track and thought that 10 miles in traffic at Mach 3 on a bike was sufficient warm-up. It was not. My HR was still really low when I started running, very strange.

That’s totally my thumb in the photo. Did I mention I am a professional photographer for a living…

I changed and started my 150-155 HR run, thinking it would be easy. It was actually quite difficult because 150-155 HR for me means roughly an 8 minute mile. I had to hold back and really keep my pace steady, which is a challenge for me. The other frustrating part of it all is my ego I suppose. I am very competitive, and I had people passing me left and right all morning! I wanted so bad to blast ahead and pretend race them but I couldn’t!

I kept to the plan and finished my test. Below are my splits at 150-155 HR.

1= 8:07
2= 7:56
3= 7:52
4= 7:57
5= 7:49
6= 7:55

I had to do 2 800’s right after and the amazing thing is that my HR dropped to 143! Wild stuff. I don’t quite understand what it all means but I have a lot of faith in Sonja and her training plan.


Sunday I ran with Abbe down the East Side path and we eventually made our way to Claire’s Beer Run!

From Cabo to being Coached

Posted on by Posted in All, Fitness, Training: Cycling, Training: Running 1 Comment

I set off last Thursday morning with 9 friends en-route to Cabo San Lucas for a 4 day bachelor party aka ‘4 day bender’.

For those of you geographically challenged below is a map of where we were headed. I was really excited as it is remote, and is also home to the mighty Humboldt Squid.

SIDENOTE: I watched a lot of nature shows as a kid so I tend to get excited about that kind of information. Humboldt Squid are also man-eaters ohhhhh scary!

As we arrived in Cabo we ran into a mutual friend of ours who RANDOMLY happened to be going to Cabo by way of L.A. Very wild coincidence and totally awesome. I love that stuff.

Without going into my usual drawn out way of story telling I figured I would just give some highlights.

Cabo is very beautiful with a rugged almost ‘Mars-like’ terrain. Yes, I have been to Mars, it’s my home planet.

The first night there someone made me fresh salsa for my fish tacos as the normal salsa wasn’t spicy enough for me. It was the best salsa I have ever had!

One morning we went fishing and caught an 8 foot, 140 pound Striped Marlin! During this outing we were 15 miles off the coast and a huge school of Pacific White-sided Dolphins were following the boat, jumping and speeding along! I have always wanted to see this species of dolphin, so you could imagine my excitement level.

SIDENOTE: The photos I took were horrible so I appropriated some. Whatever.

During the day a few of us non-golfers would sit by the beautiful beach drinking Coronas. Once the group returned we would head out and explore town, causing a bit of mayhem here and there. It was a bachelor party after all.

Cabo San Lucas is a beautiful place and I would recommend it to anyone who love sandy beaches and surreal landscapes.

RETURN TO REALITY…

The flight home was painful. Lack of sleep, nutrition and the fact that my liver was angry were the main issues, as well as the large fellow next to me spilling into my personal space.

SUPER RETURN TO REALITY…

Let’s do some time traveling to oh, November of last year. After a fantastic race year capped off by the New York City Marathon and my first Boston Qualifier I thought about taking my game higher. To open myself up a little, I will say that my ultimate goal out of all of this is not Boston at all. My supreme dream is to get to Kona. For those not familiar, Kona is the Ironman World Championships, the race of races, end game. (Don’t get me wrong, there are crazier things to race, this is only my opinion.) In order to get to Kona you need to qualify which is very difficult.

Realizing this, I knew I needed help. I needed someone to take me under their wing and coach me, something I have never done. Remember, my athletic life started in 2008. Up until then I was just a pedestrian…

After a few months of research, I found that no one really fit what I was looking for.

Time traveling back to the present… I have finally found the coach that fits my criteria. Some of you may know her, as our Triathlon/Running circle is smaller than a lot of us realize. Her name is Sonja and she is a killer triathlete.

I met Sonja in June during the Quassy Rev3 Half Ironman. Basically, we rode part of the bike portion playing leap frog until she finally kicked my ass and took off! Since then I have chatted with her often about races and followed her progress as an athlete. I encourage all of you to follow her blog goSonja if you already don’t.

So why did I choose her as a coach?

I find similarities in our athletic careers that I think she gets and can understand where I am athletically. She started racing out of nowhere like me and has taken it very far.

Sonja is also a wife and mother and I am completely in awe of her ability to manage a family and her triathlon training. Not to compare my day-to-day to that of a mother, but my life here in NYC is really busy, and if someone like her can accomplish these things, then I have no excuses.

Lastly, she is a really fun racer. She is serious, but goofs off and enjoys the ride. Those of you who know me understand that I am a complete nut during a race. I need a coach that has a quirky and fun personality too I guess.

So. I have never had ANY sort of structure to my workouts. In fact, I only ran like 2 times a week, biked 3 times and so forth and only when I felt like it. All of this changed when my plane landed in Newark after I had 4 days of relaxation in Cabo. Coach Sonja was about to set it off!

Tuesday I did a crazy bike trainer workout. We are working on deciphering my heart rate in regards to my aerobic fitness and I am so excited about it. Throw science into something and I’m all in.

—

Wednesday I did a 1 hour fun tempo run. 9.5 miles at a 7 minute pace which was evidently not fun enough and too fast. I guess I just get too wild out there in the Park and let loose. Maybe it’s my music? My sneakers perhaps? More zombies were chasing me and I had to escape?

It’s going to be really exciting to see what areas I improve in and how I develop as an athlete. Beyond Defeat (of course) will document everything so stay tuned.

The next week is looking to kick my ass and get some real data in the works and I am very excited. I am also excited about Claire’s Beer Run this Sunday and wonder if that counts towards Sonja’s coached training?

A Taste of Spring!

Posted on by Posted in All, Fitness, Training: Cycling, Training: Running 2 Comments

This Thursday and Friday in NYC were slated to be in the 50’s and 60’s. You better believe everyone was outside doing something whether it was running, biking, or drinking.  I did all 3.

On Thursday night some of the Runner Army met in Central Park for a tempo run. In attendance: Joe, Matt6, Samantha, Susan, and Abbe. Clearly, Abbe and Matt6 need blogs.

We split into 2 groups of 3 and blazed the northern loop of the Park. So many people were out and it was really fun wearing single layers of clothes in the mighty February.

We finished up the run (strategically) by Tavern on the Green, where Joe had parked his car. He had brought us all a sample beer from his latest brew, Coffee Stout. We sat in a circle in the Park savoring this amazing beer, i was so fun. After the beer, Susan, Abbe and I hopped in a cab headed East to continue our ‘Bamboozaling’ as Abbe dubbed it.

We grabbed a table at Brother Jimmy’s, all of us still decked out in running gear. We drank and ate runner style til 11! How did that happen? ‘Time flies.’

Friday was even warmer than Thursday! I had been skateboarding to work again and today was no exception!

After work I jumped on ‘Athena’ my trusty track bike that has never let me down. Once we crashed headfirst into an SUV going 25MPH (through the windshield) and rode away unscathed, but that’s anther story.

SIDENOTE: Fellow run/fitness blogger Kelly from Meals for Miles and I discovered a few months ago we are neighbors. I ran into her  (our first time meeting) leaving for my ride and we discovered that we live in neighboring buildings! How wild. Who says NYC is a small town?!

She is the ‘Fastest Bike in the Galaxy’ and is very responsive. It is a Cyclops Track bike made my Mike Mulholland for a US Track rider. It was made in the early 80’s with Columbus tubing and weighs nothing.

I set off down Lexington full throttle. It was amazing out and I was really having fun. I decided to ride through Times Square and by the Empire for nostalgic reasons. It wasn’t the best idea seeing as everyone was out in large groups, making it dangerous at major intersections. Why is it that a car going 30MPH inhibits pedestrians from crossing the street, but a bike at the same speed doesnt? Its still going to be quite painful when I crash into you.

SoHo was bumping and people were eating outside everywhere in the sidewalk seating. Such a refreshing change from piles of snow. (and I like snow)

I jetted up 3rd and 1st Avenues to get home. The cool thing about now riding for awhile is that your legs get stronger, like scary strong on a track bike. At stop lights I could ‘0-60’ sprint very fast and get my max speed up in no time at all. Did I mention that it has no brakes? That’s where the scary part comes in.

TRACK BIKE 101: A true track bike (or fixie as those god forsaken hipsters I hate so much dub it) has one gear per se. It is always locked into this gear and cannot coast. Meaning, at a standstill you could pedal backwards and the bike goes backwards. The handle bars have nothing but grip tape on them, no shifters, no brake levers etc. It is the purest form of a bike. In order to stop you must slow your legs down or skid. Another way is to throw your legs in the air (like you just don’t care) and while the back tire is off the ground, reverse the drive train. I live for this.


I finished up my ride and felt great having taken advantage of the amazing weather!


Survive my Birthday + Cycle for Survival

Posted on by Posted in All, Fitness, Training: Cycling 1 Comment

Question: Can you survive an epic dance birthday party, only to wake up and have to spin your face off at Cycle for Survival?

My birthday party was Saturday night. My REAL birthday is February 15, so you still have time to get me presents. (Swim coach) Todd and I had been planning it for about three weeks and were hoping for a whopper of a party.

I rode my bike down to meet him Saturday morning since the weather was amazing! 40 degrees and sunny. Wait, thats nice weather?! NYC has been slammed with a winter I wont soon forget, so 40 and sunny sounds like heaven. Speaking of heaven, thats exactly where I was when riding down to meet him. It had been 2 months since I rode and I really missed it. All smiles.

We went out to Costco to get beer, liquor and snacks for the party. It was absolute mayhem. They send everyone into the store with these obnoxious double wide shopping carts that no one knows how to drive. On the outside I looked like a happy shopper, but on the inside I was screaming. This was an exercise in patience.

Lets skip right along to the party.

For the first few hours I was bar tending. It was during this time that I realized I am a horrible bar tender. I get way to distracted talking to people and bobbing around to the music.

The place really got bumping around 10-12 when the entire Runner Army showed up (sans running gear) as well as numerous other friends. At one point there were 40-50 of us out dancing.

SIDENOTE: If I am not running, biking or swimming I have an over abundance of energy. If you feed me enough beer I will dance until my legs fall off. I like lots of attention and therefore will try and dance with everybody.

I was home in bed by 1:30-2AM. On a non-race weekend this would be dandy as I could sleep in, but I had to wake up for Cycle for Survival.

I had joined Jess, from fitchickinthecity.com, and her team. I had the last shift which was a life saver based on my behavior the night before. Arriving at 10:30AM I had 20 minutes until it was my turn to ride. There were maybe 500 people and 150 spin bikes set up and the volume of dance music trumped my party by 10.

Jumping on the bike we set off with a bunch of intervals. My instructor was this feisty gal who whooped our butts. In 10 minutes I was soaking wet with sweat and totally lucid. This feeling is why I love spinning. You cant really experience it on a regular bike because the faster you go, the more windy it is, therefore cooling you down.

After 45 minutes of grueling spin it was over. I’m pretty sure I sweat out all the booze from the night before. Jess, her husband Rick and I set off for some food.

After food, I rode my bike down to help Todd clean up the party.

Thanks to everyone who came out to the party! it was so awesome seeing everyone!

(Run like) being chased by Zombies!!!

Posted on by Posted in All, Fitness, Training: Running 4 Comments

As the weekend approached and weather for Sunday looked optimal, I contemplated racing the Gridiron 4 Miler.
After some peer pressure from some of the Runner Army who were racing as well, I signed up.

Saturday, the rain was stuck in limbo. It was coming down just hard enough to need an umbrella, but not really? I hate that.
I live right by the NYRR so it was a quick walk to pick up my race number.

At the A-B last name area the woman informed me that “There is no Christopher Baker” in her numbers. Strange indeed. Had I used one of my alias? Perhaps my secret identity? The next woman I spoke to (who had a laptop) told me that the online race registration closes the Tuesday before the race, so it was impossible that I could have been signed up. Touchè race organizer lady. You win this time.

Leaving Road Runners, I was very disappointed and sulking. The rain didn’t help and I couldn’t help but to laugh at myself. Wow, did I really want to race that bad? Either way, I was running tomorrow, and if I couldn’t race the Gridiron, I would race unsuspecting recreational runners.

I was cooped up all Saturday and really wanted to be social (if you personally know me you get this) so I called up Ahern and Robin to see what they were up to. After a brief discussion we decided to have a Wii Golf Tournament, but not just any old tournament… We decided to dress like golfers and make ‘golfer cocktails’ too.

It was a blast. We made all kinds of ‘golfer cocktails’ but my favorite was the Ginger Beer and Jameson thingy we constructed. Needless to say by the end of the night more people had arrived and ‘golfing’ turned into  ‘wild dance party.’

This is a photo from the night capturing one of my breakdancing jumps. Michael Jordan has nothin’ on my air. Don’t judge.

SIDENOTE: I studied Shaolin Kung-Fu a few years back and the only thing I was good at (or good enough to demonstrate) was the jumping tumbles. Our Master would have me do them in front of class, having me clear a 5 foot rope, then summersaulting to the ground and popping up. It was fun and I like attention so, win win.

RACE DAY (in my head)

I left my apartment around 11AM to hit the Park. It was such a gorgeous day for a change! I wore shorts, Zensah calf and arm sleeves and a dry fit top. I hate wearing loads of stuff when I run so this was perfect for the day.

My best ‘Love Sign’. I did this because for some reason in my race pics I always have the ‘Love Sign’ made with my hands. It’s really weird.

Starting the run I could tell it was going to be a good one. Sometimes you just know, you can sense it, like the engines are revved up and nothing is stalling out. Bueller? Runners? Bueller? Anyone? Are you with me?

I always enter on 84th and 5th Ave and make a counter-clockwise loop (de loop). I decided not to look at my Garmin too much. The first time I looked at it was at the end of Mile 1. It read 5:50. For real? It didn’t feel like a sub6 pace, but I guess I was zoned out.

generally speaking I was having a blast! It was sunny and I had broken a sweat (which is fantastic for February). I showed Harlem Hill what time it was, but it still slowed me down a bit.

As I rounded the lower loop I was really cooking. I started laughing out loud as I was passing other runners, because I thought how crazy and maniacal I must look. I thought, “Wow. What if ‘they’ thought I was being chased by Zombies and running for my life!?”

SIDENOTE: Running fast and laughing hard is a bad combo.

I finished up the 6 Miles with a 6:03 average pace. My legs were totally trashed, but I kinda wanted it like that.

I ended up limping my way to some Superbowl Parties later that night. On the way there, I was walking down 1st Avenue and this gal passed me who looked familiar. I had made a pact with myself a few years ago to always make contact with anyone who looks familiar or I think I may know. Life is too short and I also think coincidences happen on purpose.  So! I said, “Hey Dori?!” She turned and was like “Yeeeeees?” We quickly figured out that we knew each other from twitter/fbook and had a mutual friend, Erica Sara. I love NYC because of moments like this.

Swimasaurus Rex

Posted on by Posted in All, Fitness, Training: Swimming 2 Comments

Yesterday, as my errands finished at noon, I wondered what fun thing I could do in the city seeing as I had no plans. Just then, like something out of Twilight Zone, my phone rang.

“Hello?”

“Bakes, it’s Todd, what are you doing? Let’s get our swim on.”

“Hell yes! See you in 20 minutes.”

And with a simple phone call my fate for Saturday was sealed.

SIDENOTE: Are you kidding me? You think I didn’t know it was Todd calling me? What ‘phone’ of the year 2011 doesn’t have caller ID? A crappy one. I added our names for affect, and in case you forgot who’s blog you were reading. You’re welcome.

I haven’t swam since the Harriman Sprint Triathlon last August!!! That’s like 6 months.

After some coffee, prepared for me by Ila (thank you Ila!) we hit the pool. Todd said we were to swim 1 Mile and to document our speed and time so we can follow our progression over the next few months. I was down, but more importantly to me, I just didn’t want to drown during Ironman Arizona at the end of this season.

This is my ‘To infinity and beyond’, ready and willing to swim pose. My goggles are awesome.

After a 20 lap warm up we stet the clock (Todd has one of those underwater timing thingys) and started the swim. Todd is faster than me, but for some reason I always try to keep up the first couple of laps before I realize I’m burning out.

When you take me out of Air and put me into Water I turn from fast to slow. It’s quite frustrating. Last year after getting help from Brandon (who is a sick swimmer) and a few others, the consensus is that my form just needs time to marinate.

Focused on this, my swim was based on my technique rather than trying to be a speedster. The first few laps were difficult (seeing as how I haven’t swam in 6 months) but I slowly clicked into pace. I practiced keeping as aerodynamic as possible and having quick powerful strokes. I felt good about everything, even though I wasn’t flying along, I was doing well.

Half way through the mile my body was on fire. Seriously. I thought about getting out of teh pool and walking onto the roof deck and into the snow to ‘chill out’ for a hot second. But, I didn’t. My runner mind was fully active and I wanted accurate data upon finishing my swim.

Todd finished about 10 lengths ahead of me. As I wrapped up, he gave us our times.

31.08 = 1,6500 YDS (1 Earth Mile)

I was happy with that.

I quickly popped out of the pool and went to the roof deck. I stepped out into the snow and it felt awesome! Instantly, my body cooled down.

Back at Todd’s place Ila had made us some delicious Kale Chips! I’m including the next photo because it’s silly. Todd had leftover pasta and so ‘created’ a pasta sandwich for us to eat while we decided on what our ‘real’ food should be.

I love swimming. My favorite part is that (normally) I sleep like the dead that that night. Unfortunately, last night I woke up at 3AM.

—

SUPER UNRELATED SIDENOTE: Amy C. showed my this free app called ‘Instant Heart Rate’. It’s very cool!

I got a 42 BPM resting rate which I understand to be good, but I am told I need to eat less? I’m not a doctor.

Runnin’ on Ice

Posted on by Posted in All, Fitness, Training: Cycling, Training: Running 4 Comments

One of my favorite things to do in the entire world is ice skate. It’s fluid, fast and very soothing to my mind.

When I was age 14-18 I worked at our local ice rink. It was my time here, that I really fell in love with the sport. I also met a lot of very great people, some of whom I still keep in touch with.

During New York City’s frigid winter I get very distraught not being able to ride my bikes. Now, I know a lot of you hard core cyclists still ride, and I can dig it, personally I just hate wearing layers upon layers of clothes. In order to keep my dwindling sanity, I go ice skating in Central Park every weekend.

Look at that ice, glassy perfection just ripe for Mach 1.

I tend to go by myself for a few of reasons. These reasons do not apply to anyone in the Runner Army.

Most of my friends have a hard time waking up early and getting places.
Most of my friends can’t (or fear) ice skating.
Most of my friends hate children (no, I’m not referring to myself).

I try and get to Wollman Rink around 10AM which is when it opens. This is also optimal time because around 1PM the tourists attack the rink and it gets way to crowded to go fast. It is, without a doubt, the best rink in town. It’s 1 1/2 times bigger than a regulation sized hockey rink, it’s outdoors, and it doesn’t get obnoxiously crowded. Not to sound too sappy, but it’s also really very beautiful and scenic being surrounded by New York’s skyline as you bust your moves. I generally skate for an hour or two and then head for some hot chocolate. It’s a fantastic way to start a weekend, as well as a sick quad workout!


I still have my trusty hockey skates! Hot!

SIDENOTE: If anyone wants lessons (or just wants to skate), just hit me up!

RACE REPORT: 054 The Goofy Challenge

Posted on by Posted in All, Race Reports, Running 25 Comments

What are you made of?

SIDENOTE: This is a long story, grab a cup of coffee, a blanket and silence your cell phone.

I signed up for the Goofy Challenge (a Half Marathon Saturday followed by a Full Mary Sunday) with my girlfriend this summer. Since becoming single, (my girlfriend becoming another infamous ‘ex girlfriend’) the question I had pondered was whether to follow through with the race or bag it?

Enter my Mom…

In September my Mom (who lives in Tampa) started run/walking before work. She would cover roughly 1-2 miles. I was very proud of her for doing so and coached her on how to evolve to run without the walk part.

She bought a pair of Newtons and set out to improve her form and endurance. In less then a months time she could run 3 miles non-stop and was in love with her new sneakers. It was then she expressed interest in running the Half Marathon portion of the Goofy Challenge asking me “Chris, do you think I could do that?” I told that she most definitely could if she kept up with her running.

A month later she called and told me she was signing up! She would run the race in celebration of her being 20 years Cancer free! The Goofy Challenge was on!

FLASHBACK: When I was 13 my Mom was abruptly diagnosed with Colon Cancer. She hospitalized for over a month. My daily routine would be to go visit her after school in the hospital. It was a very scary time for me, my 2 brothers and my father. She just barely made it and now, she is a nurse because of her experience.

I arrived in Tampa on Thursday, and was picked up by my step dad Richard. The following day my mom and I ran errands and I made my ‘Race Burritos.’ She was a mess! She kept asking me if I thought she would finish? “What is the furthest distance you ran under my training program?” She looked worried and said, “Only 3 miles.” I was a bit worried hearing that but didn’t let it show. I mean, I had only ran 9 miles as my furthest run since November, so we were in the same boat and yes, we are related.

That afternoon we headed out to Orlando, checked into our condo and hit the expo.

At 6:30 we went to a restaurant called Fresco Italian Market. It rocks and my mom found it last year when I ran just the Marathon. It’s like the only non-chain restaurant in Orlando perhaps.

One of my best friends, Todd, who my readers might know as swim coach/partner, local swimmer, college buddy, drinking buddy etc. had his parents come meet us for dinner. They are like my second parents and are always the best hosts when I visit them in Boca. Todd’s dad Mike, who I call ‘Coach’ had asked a few months ago if he could sponsor one of my races, and that race would be the Goofy Challenge. Our agreement was that I would wear Boca Hoops branded gear while I ran, a basketball league he has run for the last 30 years.

…In the spring of 1989, in a kitchen in East Boca Raton, three men were brought together by a gentleman named Joe Murphy. Their purpose was to bring the game of “round ball” to the youth of Boca Raton. Their goal was a simple one, to teach the basics of basketball, while promoting sportsmanship and teamwork. Little did Bob Mullin, Mike Doyle, and Jody Forstot imagine that what would start as a league of 340 children in 1989,would grow to over 1350 children. That 34 teams would evolve into 136 teamsthose 18 gutsy girls would pave the way for over 440 girls and four coed divisions would become 5 boys divisions and 4 girls divisions…

bocahoops.com

The 5 of us had a fantastic meal… beer, wine and one of my staples Shrimp Fra Diavlo. At 9:30 we left, all of us knowing that we had to wake up at 3:30AM to get to the race on time. Insane! The Disney Marathon weekend has to be the earliest race starts in history. I even thought about staying up all night… but those of you who really know me understand how I can rarely stay up past midnight.

RACE DAY 1: Half Marathon (Saturday)

I was waking up every hour on the hour. I guess I was anxious, regardless I was glad because if I was to fall into a deeper sleep it would have been harder to pop out of bed.

3:30AM is early, so early in fact that I though of people in NYC getting ready to LEAVE the bars and head home for bed.

My mom and I geared up while her husband (my step-dad) helped out by making coffee and keeping us on schedule. We jumped in the car and headed toward Epcot where he dropped us off. It was 50 degrees and would shape up to be a perfect running day.

Coaching my mom, I instructed her to hit the porto-johns before we get into our corrals. There were a lot of people running (27,000) making the scene pretty chaotic. It took us 45 minutes to get to our corral in the sea of runners. While in the crowds we made some friends who liked that my mom and I had matching Newton sneakers on. I had been telling her all these months how cool runners are and she was experiencing it firsthand!

She was in Corral G and as we entered the guy was like “Hey man, what are you doing, you’re in the first Corral!” I smiled and put my arm around my mom and said “I’m running this thing with my mom, man.” Cool. As we stood there it started to fill in pretty quick. Then, Wave 1 set off and fireworks erupted! Every 6 minutes they let another Wave go and after 40 minutes it was finally our time.

We started slowly running and navigating through the throngs of walkers! I couldn’t believe how many people started the Half Mary by walking! I mean, I love anyone out there doing it, but I would save my walking for the end, right? Even my mom was getting annoyed and she started picking it up and bobbin’ ‘n weavin’! It was all quite amusing. We were holding down a steady 12 minute per mile pace and making good headway. We took turns leading.

At mile 3.5 we took a porto-john break. 50 minutes or so had elapsed. This was also the furthest my mom had ever run.

Pressing forward I shed a layer of clothing is the sun came out, heating us up. At the Aid Stations, it was really fun teaching my mom about how to grab the water cups and make a spigot so you don’t get water up your nose.

As we approached mile 5-6 the crowds started showing and cheering us on. Then, we hit the Magic Kingdom (which in my opinion is the highlight on both days). My mom was thrilled seeing all the Disney characters and getting to run through Cinderella’s Castle. I had to tell her “Mom, smile! We are being photographed all over the place!”

A little after mile 7 she asked if we could walk for a minute. Of course. I had told her that today was her race, anything she wanted to do was okay by me. She even asked a few times if I wanted to run ahead so my time wasn’t bad.

She would walk for maybe 100 meters then pick it up again, which I thought was outstanding! All-in-all we maybe walked ¾ of a mile the whole race!

There were lots of marching bands rocking out as we hit certain points. One of them was covering Cameo’s ‘Word Up’ and I couldn’t have been more excited. I looked at my mom and she was like “What? Why are you smiling?” I said, “Mom! That’s ‘Word Up’! You know, that guy with the funny voice who sings ‘Doin the Butt’?” as I attempted to sing the song. She just laughed.

Approaching the 10 mile mark we started hearing fire trucks and ambulances. As I looked back a fire truck was barreling down on us and hopped the median full speed, runners scattering like pigeons! It drove up the road and pulled over where someone was in dire need of medical attention. It was here my mom asked what time I thought we would finish? She assumed maybe 4 hours and was startled when I told her we were close to making 3 hours! She was really excited.

Ascending an overpass, this volunteer looked at me and said something. I looked to my left at my mom and she was smiling and said, “She was talking to me, not you! She likes my style!” My mom began explaining how her pink top matched her running capris because they had a pink stripe. Then, she noted that her bib matched her Newton sneakers. Yes mom, you were stylin.

Passing mile 12 I asked how she was doing. I got a thumbs up and so I said to her, “Lets do this! We’re gonna finish strong! Ready?” With that, I led us forward as we passed loads of runners. I knew my mom was hurting, but I also knew she could do this.

Finally rounding the corner, the finish in sight, we picked it up a little more! As we crossed the finish my mom and I threw our hands up! I looked at her and she smiled and said, “I did it!” I gave her a hug and congratulated her. She stopped me and said, “Chris, thank you for helping me through this. You were a great coach.” No prob mom… anytime.

Sex/
Age		 Bib Overall

Place

 Age
Place		 Finish
Time		 Pace/
Mile		 AG %
M32 20165 16623 1111 03:01:25 13.50 32.6 %

We got our Donald Duck medals and some water, then exited, meeting Richard. He gave my mom a big hug and then took some photos of us. My mom’s main concern was that she have a nice photo to put on facebook!

Richard cooked my mom and I a huge breakfast while we fielded phone calls and text messages from family and friends wishing to congratulate my mom.

I also gave my mom the necklace I had made by Erica Sara (www.ericasaradesigns.com). Aside from making really beautiful jewelry for everyday wear, she also makes ‘Race Bling’ which are cute pendants with inscriptions on them. I had mine say on the front: 13.1, Disney Half; and on the back: January 2011, 20 Years Cancer Free. My mom was so excited. She hasn’t taken it off since and will probably be buying lots more from Erica Sara Designs! Thanks Erica.

We showered and went to play some mini-golf, a favorite past-time of mine since I was 9. Afterwords we all took a power nap, then headed back out to Fresco Italian Market for dinner. It’s such a good place, why jeopardize pre-marathon dinner. I had linguine and white clams sauce. Awesome! We toasted to our success and celebrated mildly.

In bed by 10:30PM, alarm set for 3:30AM for the second day in a row. Pain.

RACE DAY 2: Full Marathon (Sunday)

I was really groggy and a total ‘space case’. It is rare to see me in this state and I encourage anyone witnessing it to tease me and savor the moment.

After a cup of coffee we were off. Richard met a nice lady named Karin the day before and offered her a ride so she joined our crew. My mom and Richard dropped us off at the start and I made my way to the corrals. I made some pals and our conversation revolved around… yes, running. We started talking about goals for the day and they asked me what I wanted to do? I looked up and just said “You know, I think Sub3 would be fantastic.” Moments later I thought, “Don’t write a check with your mouth that your ass can’t cash.”

The corral situation was night and day (or day-n-nite) compared with the Half. Instead of being in the very back, I was now toeing the start line.

As the national anthem came on I was transported to a moment in time, a memory. The president of our company, Mr. Allen Brill, was very patriotic and was always thrilled to hear of my running adventures. In fact, he is partly responsible for me even running in the first place.

He passed away on Thanksgiving weekend and shocked our entire company. He had been diagnosed 2 months earlier with stage 4 Lung Cancer. I had known him for 7 years which is a drop in the bucket compared so some of my fellow coworkers.

One of my last memories of him was being called to his office the Monday after the NYC Marathon. As I entered he looked weaker than normal and I knew he was sick. He was standing, smiling and shaking his head, “Three hours, one minute and fifty-nine seconds. Good god man! That’s outstanding!” We chatted some more before I left, happy, but worried about his health.

Another clear memory that popped into my head. The Friday before the NYC Marathon he called me as the day was coming to a close. “Mr. Baker, it’s Mr. Brill. I understand you will of course be running Sunday.” Yes, of course!” I cheered on. “Do me a favor. Run it for me.”

I didn’t run the NYC Marathon for him that Sunday. I ran it for me, but as I stood there in the cold night, in my bubble of thought, I looked up and said “For Allen. I will run THIS race for him, in his honor and for his love of sport.”

And with that, the gun went off and the race began.

The first mile was pretty uneventful. I was getting warmed up and summoning my energy, feeling my body… was it okay after a half mary the day prior.

I was speeding up and I knew it. Voices rattled in my head, “Negative splits.” “Don’t start too fast.” “Make your bed.” I felt great and was excited to be opening up my pace, passing loads of runners. Miles 2-5 were run at a 6:30 pace and as I thought about slowing down, being ‘logical’, I decided to run this race all heart. I thought, “If I’m running this for Allen, he is going to get a great race.”

The first 8 miles are super boring. Straight up highways where they have bands and clowns or whatever. It’s still boring. I got to see the same band that played ‘Word up’ which helped I guess. I also ate half of my ‘Race Burrito’ without slowing down so that kept me busy.

A few miles before the halfway point we entered the Magic Kingdom which is the highlight of the whole race. I saluted and waved to all the Disney Characters, especially Sleeping Beauty.

Of course, running through Cinderella’s Castle was sweet, especially because I was the only one in it for the Marathon. Exiting the Magic Kingdom was sad, because I knew that dark times were ahead. I was, however, looking forward to sunrise which was in the next 30 minutes.

During miles 15-16 this really cute blond gal and I were running together. The sun came up at this moment too and I tried to not get to overwhelmed at how beautiful it was because, well, I was racing. She was admittedly faster and just toying with me I think because at mile 16 she took off never to be seen again. I ran that mile in 6:22, I’m such a sucker.

Miles 16-18 are in the Animal Kingdom which sounds cool, but I never saw any animals. 19-21 are like th
e worst for this course and they were coming up, so I was frightened. M legs were on fire and hurting pretty bad. I thought, “Make it to mile 19 and then walk a bit.”

I ate a Honey Stinger and munched on my ‘Race Burrito’ some more. As 19 approached I slowed down and walked maybe 5 paces. Looking at my Garmin I realized at this moment that a Sub3 Marathon was within my grasp, but how? I was in so much pain, natural pain albeit. I thought about Allen and ran. I ran hard, tears being choked back as I thought not of him, but of my mom, and her battle with cancer and how proud of her I was.

I did something I have never done before in a race, although it’s such a simple principle. As I picked up my speed, legs burning, I said to myself, “This pain is temporary, it is only your brain telling you to stop running. You will be okay, you always are. Run to the finish,don’t stop, no matter what.” And I did.

The last few miles were excruciating (as all you runners know) and I kept busy by watching my Garmin. My mantra was to look at it and the yell, “Come on! Come on Baker!”

FUN ANECDOTE: At mile 23 you round a lake that is part of a Disney Resort, it’s very scenic. To my left was water and to my right, a grassy hill where something was moving towards me. It jumped into the middle of the sidewalk right in front of me as I dodged stepping on it. I simultaneously realized it was a fuzzy baby duck and yelled “CUTE!” I then looked back to see if my competition heard me say the ‘cute’ thing, worried about my street cred.

As the last mile was coming to a close, I realized that my ultimate goal of running a Sub3 Marathon was about to happen. I was thrilled. Crossing the finish I threw my hand up and yelled, “YEAH!” I was given my Mickey Marathon Medal, then walked over to the Goofy area where I got my 3rd Medal.

Sex/
Age		 Bib Overall

Place

 Age
Place		 Finish
Time		 Pace/
Mile		 AG %
M32 266 61 17 02:58:16 6:47 70.1 %

I saw my Mom and Richard who congratulated me, excited at my time. I had ran the Full Mary faster than the Half Mary, which in itself is bizarre, ironic, mysterious (if you don’t know the story) and straight up awesome.

We checked out of the hotel and headed to a Cracker Barrel at my request. We don’t have them in NYC and wow, I miss their breakfast.

That night we celebrated by having a fantastic steak dinner cooked by my Mom and Richard. I don’t often eat meat, but this was a celebration for my Mom as well as me. Many toasts were made as we reminisced about the races.

I left the next morning, returning to NYC with an overwhelming amount of joy.

“Battle Stations was called as we woke from sleep. The battle, it was real, and we came out of it triumphant.”

—

Triumphant does not even begin to describe the weekend. To see my Mom cross that finish line, with the look of a child who just discovered Christmas morning, is unforgettable. She beat Cancer, and now she achieved what she thought was unachievable. I am so proud of her. ‘There are only possibilities.’

Thanks to Boca Hoops Summer Camp for sponsoring me through this race.

Thanks to Richard, who put up with 2 crazy runners all week and was our unfaltering helper.