Running for Charity

Hey everyone.

I will be running the Crescent City Classic this year.  Better yet, I will be running it for charity.  I am running to raise money for a great organization here in New Orleans, the YLC.

The Young Leadership Council has a large variety of community projects to help just about everyone in the city.  Check out all of the projects that your donations will help.

Please consider donating to this very worthy charity.  You can do so at the link below.  Just enter how much you want to donate in the YLC box at the bottom of the page.  They will also ask you which runner you are supporting.  Please reference John Erwin.

Donate here (select YLC, then John Erwin).

I'm still running

Well it has been a while.  For those of you who have been wondering, yes I am still running.  Life has gotten busy, and while I have made time to run, I haven't made any time to write about it.  Lets do a little recap of where I am at.

Since starting last July, here are my stats.

Total miles run: 168.

So you can see when I get busy, and when I get some free time.  Here are some of my favorite routes that I have run since the last time I did a post.

Long New Orleans route that runs through Waldenburg Park and by Jackson Square.

Longer New Orleans route running on Magazine and St. Charles.

And lastly, here is my beach run for when work send me to Biloxi.

My current goal for this year is to run 500 miles by the end of the year.  I have a long way to go.

See you out on the road!

It feels good to be back

It has been about since my last post and that has been too long.  Shin splints are nothing to scoff at, and the rest has really helped.  Today, after a week of stretching a resting my shins, it was time to get back out there.  The weather today was perfect for running.  The skies were overcast which kept the temperature in check.  I wanted to check out a new running route for my run today, so I called up my Dad for a suggestion.  Here is the route. (Click the link for more detailed information!)

View 8-18 run in a larger map

Although you can't tell from the map above, the run began and ended on the levee where St. Charles and Carrollton meet.  Today we ran 3.36 miles in 36:22.  The levee is paved at the top and is a good surface to run on.  I have to tell you, this may become my favorite training route.  Although there isn't any shade, the breeze coming off of the river is a godsend and the views aren't too shabby either. I think I like this route so much because as I can condition myself to run longer, this route will always work and reward me with new sights.  It is possible to run all the way to Baton Rouge if you wanted to.  Today, I was not the only person who had the good idea to get out and get active.  There were joggers, runners, bikers, dog walkers, and even horse riders.  We decided to take it easy today, as I didn't know if my legs were truly back to 100% yet.  Although my shins started out a little tight, they soon loosened up an allowed me to kick it up a little.  One of the reasons that I enjoy this portion of the city, is the industrial feel of it.  Across the river there are various industrial structures and cargo ship loading terminals.

As we ran, I noticed a few things about the people who frequent this levee.  Everyone here seems to be supportive to one another.  At one point I had decided to walk a little bit to assess my shin splints.  As I stopped, a friendly biker shared some word s of encouragement to push me to continue running.  Random words of encouragement from strangers always seems to give you a boost of energy to keep on pushing.  The other reason that I particularly enjoy this route is due to the starting and ending point. For anyone who lives here, you know whats on the corner.  

Cooter Brown's has one of the larger beer selections of all the bars in town.  Running and beer go hand in hand, so ending a run here is perfect.  We didn't stop in today, but I can ensure you that we will be in the future.  

See you on the road!

Rest and Recovery

This morning was my first run since Wednesday.  I was really looking forward to getting back out there and get some more miles under my belt.  As I started running, my shins started to fatigue and tighten up.  Yeah, I have been hit with shin splints.  The best plan of attack to battle shin splints is to stop, for up to a week or two, and see how things go.  I have been gathering all the information that I could find on shin splints.  I will be doing a new shin stretch regimen to strengthen those muscles.  I advise anyone who has run into this to consult runners world for workouts and stretches for all sorts of common running ailments.  So while I rest up, I will report on my workouts and stretching.  Wish me a speedy recovery!

 

See you on the road (soon)!

Rest day catch up, and how to stretch

As I have stated, today has been a rest day.  The saints are playing and that is a cause to celebrate.  I had a running buddy over for some BBQ and beers.   Not to bore you with the beers, they were good.

Tonight I want to discuss something that has been on my mind.  Stretching.  Stretching is something many beginners know is something they should be doing but are sometimes confused as to proper techniques for running.  To be honest, this is a skill that I have never really learned.  Up to this point, I have been stretching very minimally.  So I have looked to the internet to answer my question.  How should runners be stretching? It seems that there is much debate on the subject.  I have always believed that simple static stretching was sufficient.  Some people argue that no stretching is necessary, while others insist that dynamic stretching is the only way to go.  I'm no expert, so I went to the source.  Runners World Magazine is a great source of information for the running community.  It seems that dynamic stretching is the accepted standard for runners.  Check out their stretch routine here.  Going forward, I will be utilizing this guide to stretching. Let me know how you prepare for a run in the comments below!

See you on the Road! 

The workday Metairie Run

First and foremost, I want to congratulate my flag football team for an awesome game last night.  Even though we played down one person, we easily handled a much larger team.  I'm not saying we are going to win the championship, but we are going to win the championship.  Today was the first time that I tried to organize a group of people to run together.  I tried rounding up as many people from work to go run, and several people actually sounded interested.  However, it turned out to just be two of us.  Oh well, it was still a good 2 mile run.  Here is the route:

View 8/8/2012 run in a larger map

We just started from our office and headed into Old Metairie and made a nice loop.  I have to say, I haven't taken many rest days since I have started.  If you have been counting, I have taken two so far.  For one of those, I played football instead, so not much of a rest.  I was feeling it today.  My legs were just tired.  I was running with a guy in much better shape than I.  Thanks Paul for being patient with me!  Other than my own fatigue, the weather was nice due to the earlier thunderstorms and the sidewalks were easily accessible and flat.  I had fun on this run, and I hope it continues to grow with people from my office.  If you would like to run in the Metairie area, let me know and you can join us next time!  I know that I will be missing it, but I will definitely be taking a major rest day tomorrow.  Anyway, I have a ton of housework to catch up on and a backlog of wedding thank you notes to tackle. 

After my run, another buddy decided to join me for an after run beer.  Today's brew was the seasonal Abita Satsuma Harvest Wit. 

This was a very satisfying citrus whit beer.  Belgian Wits are my favorite style of beer, and though this one was good, it also wasn't anything special.  I have to give my Louisiana beers some praise, but there are better ones out there.  Check out the brew here.   What is your favorite after run draft?  Also, if you are a fan of craft beers, there is a great beer review blog at thebishopscollar.blogspot.com.

See you on the Road!

On the road again

From time to time, I have to travel for work.  This week, I have been sent to Biloxi for two days.  No biggie, I brought my running stuff with me.  As promised, here is the new route!

View 8/6/2012 run in a larger map

At 5.36 miles, this has been my longest run to date.  Since I am working on the beach, I decided that I had to run along it when I finished up my work for the day.  One of my co-workers accompanied me on this run, and man did she push me.  Our first mile was at a 6:18 pace, well below my normal 10 minute average pace.  I think the weather had a lot to do with the performance as well.  It was nice, cool, and a little rainy.  I was worried about getting sand in my shoes as we ran, but due to the rain, this wasn't an issue.  There is a nice paved sidewalk all along the beach that made running an breeze.  Apparently, there is more in Biloxi than just Casinos.  We ran past an old plantation on the beach called Beauvoir.

This old plantation once belonged to Jefferson Davis and serves as his presidential library.  This picture really doesn't do any justice.  If you are ever out here, you should check it out.  I believe there is also an art museum on the site.  For more information, check the plantation out here.

One thing we noticed as we ran down the beach was that everything from the casinos just seems too fabricated and fake. So when we happened upon this old lighthouse, it stuck out as a no nonsense, utilitarian, and functional landmark on a coast of facades and replicas.  

I could not find any information on this lighthouse, as Biloxi is known for a larger lighthouse a few miles down the road.  If you know anything about this lighthouse, let us know in the comments below!  After the run, I was famished.  So I sniffed out the biggest all you can eat crab buffet that I could find for dinner.  I have to say, I was not disappointed! 

It has been a good day.  Also, tonight will be the first game of the summer season of PlayNola's co-ed flag football league.  Wish me luck as team Back That Pass Up starts its championship run.

See you on the road!