Winter running in April..............................

I have had the roads to myself again the last couple of days as the temperatures have dipped into the thirties and the snow and blowing winds seemed to have returned with a vengeance. I ended up getting the XM portable MP3 player to replaced my misplaced Ipod. What is great about this is I can record the talk shows I like to listen to and then listen to them on my runs. Having this to look forward to helps to entice me to get out there, while everyone else does the sane thing and stays inside.

The other good thing about snow in April is that it is giving me a break from the yard work. Maybe someday I will adapt the same attitude of weeding no matter what weather as I have done with my running, but that day is not today. My low back is extremely thankful and votes for no yard work in crappy weather EVER! We shall see...

In addition to my new running entertainment system, I also purchased a waist CamelBac (CamelBac is the brand name) which is a watering system that straps around my waist and rides on my low back area and has a tube that comes up and clips on my shoulder so you can either run with it in your mouth and drink as you go or get the tube without effort while running. I have tried different hydration systems and have found something wrong with all of them. I am hopeful (after the first couple of uses) that this is the one for me. In addition to the water spot, it has pockets and clips to hold the other things that I take with me on longer runs. I feel a little silly taking it on short runs, but I do so, so when I use it on the trail run I will be used to it and won't be wasting effort on figuring out how to use it or anything other than the churning out the miles.

My last new gadget is a heart rate monitor. This is the coolest little thing ever. As I run it tells me what my HR is as well as how many calories I am burning and keeps track of how long I have ran. If I ever figure out how to work all of the features I will probably be able to learn lots of other stuff about my training efforts. Currently, I am learning to determine how fast I am going by what my HR is, which should translate into my pushing myself a little harder some of the time which should translate into my being able to run a faster pace overall as time goes by. The main reason I want to go faster is to push into the next level of health. If one does not continue to change things up with their fitness program the body gets used to the effort and the fitness level stays the same. Or in my case, the thighs continue to be huge! I am confident that the HR monitor is going to help me to ignore the pleas of my inner child to slow down and enjoy the scenery, and instead doing what is best for the both of us.

The only problem with all my new toys is the amount of time it takes to get ready to run. It is quite comical all the straps, snaps, pouches, and paraphernalia that is gathered and engaged for a little three mile loop around the block. So what? It gets me out the door and off the couch, as well as going a long way towards adding years to my life so I can stay around and torture all those I love long into the future. I would say that is a fair return on my investments of time and money wouldn't you?