Day 2 of 2012 Los Angeles Marathon Training

So I went back again to Griffith Park for another day of training with Team To End AIDS today. They actually have a number of events going on right now like the Santa Barbara Half-Marathon next week, and the Honolulu Marathon coming up in December. The Honolulu participants are lucky because they'll get to experience summer in December. That's the thing about the Hawaiian Islands, it's practically summer all year round (unless you go up to a higher elevation). As for the Santa Barbara folks, they get to stay over there for a couple of days and even go on a cruise. As for us LA marathoners, we don't get to do any of that which is a bummer, but then again those extras are really not what running a marathon is about. Still, a cruise would be nice.

Anyway, the fall season has finally reared its overcast head over Los Angeles after a summer which seemed never ending. We're no longer wearing shorts and the rain is coming down hard. Today's run was 4 or 5 miles long depending on how far we wanted to run, and I got reports from Facebook that it was going to be 41 degrees outside. Now previously I would have dressed up in sweats for a day like this, but I learned my lesson one rainy day when I got completely soaked which made everything feel incredibly heavy. My fellow runners joked:

"Wow Ben! All this time you were actually lifting weights!"

Since we're still in the early stages of training, everyone in my pace group is still trying to learn one another's names. I have this fear that I won't learn the names of my fellow runners until a few weeks before the marathon. It would be nice to know who's who by the actual date we run 26.2 miles. How embarrassing would it be as I impatiently wait with everyone else at the starting line and say:

"Good luck buddy… Of course I know your name! What are you saying? That you don't know your own name? Please say yes!"

All this reminds me of that sketch called "What's My Name" on "Saturday Night Live" when Justin Timberlake couldn't remember the name of the beautiful girl he slept with. After embarrassing himself like any other man on this planet and saying that this show is terrible, Bill Hader replied:

"I think you're terrible!"

The morning was cold, cold, cold, and I was wearing a lot of compression clothing beneath my Team To End AIDS shirt and shorts which made little difference. The biggest concern came when my hands started to feel cold. When they start feeling that way, you're screwed. We spent the time before the run talking about the differences between a studio apartment and a junior bedroom. I've heard the latter term before as I almost considered leasing one after I moved out of the last apartment I lived in. Apparently, the kitchen is also in the bedroom of the apartment. Whatever the case, as long as the rent is low, I'd be willing to live with that.

Our run today was going to remain within the park which I'm sure was a relief to the rich residents of Burbank who we unintentionally wake up on our previous runs by being too noisy. Then again we may be doing them a favor acting as human alarm clocks and waking them up when technology fails them. Still, today they didn't have to worry about us keeping our mouths shut.

We ran near the Gene Autry Museum and over the bridge past the 5 freeway entrance. We had to watch ourselves there because car drivers were not expecting to see us coming around the corner. With these training runs, we runners are encouraged to run on the side of the road where traffic is coming from the opposite direction. My whole life has been taught to walk, run, or ride my bicycle on the right side of the road where traffic is traveling in the same direction, but I guess this is just another example of how everything we've heard is wrong.

Having conversations while you're running is easier for some but not everyone. A lot of the time I am immersed in my own crazy thoughts and don't want to be disturbed. That and I am trying to catch my breath even as I run at a comfortable pace. But to ignore other runners because of this would be incredibly rude and unnecessary.

Among the conversations taking place involved some shop in San Francisco which sells gel blocks with flavors unlike the more "natural" kinds. Gel blocks give us a burst of energy when we need it during a run, and they usually come in fruit flavors. But this store apparently has among its other flavors blocks one that tastes like a margarita! I imagine there's no alcohol in them as that would dehydrate us before we got halfway through a marathon. Still, it would be funny to take these blocks while running as it would give us that feeling of drinking alcohol without getting drunk.

The route we ran today was different from the ones I have previously ran in that it took us behind a soccer field I haven't been behind before. It also took us behind a reservoir which had an aroma we all live to avoid smelling. That urine-smelling putrid scent can be too much to bear, and it gives you an unexpected appreciation for the smog we Los Angeles residents breathe in without realizing it.

We've been meeting up at Griffith Park at 7 in the morning, a time where I'd rather be in bed. But for something like this, it is very much worth the effort. Next week we have a session of core stretching exercises which will help keep us from getting injured. I keep wondering if I am doing enough to keep my legs from going nuts on me. I do stretch after running, but I'm usually convinced that I'm missing out on something. Sooner or later, it's gonna come back to bite me with some major muscle spasm, or maybe I'm just worrying too much. I guess I'll just find out in the worst way possible.

In terms of fundraising, I have raised $250 to date towards my goal of $1,000. I sent an email out to everyone I know that I needed to raise $500 by the end of this week to get an official Team To End AIDS hat. Forget that I already have one; I was hoping this would spur people on. People in the past have told me that they have wanted to donate but that they could only give $5 dollars. They didn't want to look like they were being cheap. Hey, if that's all you can donate right now then please feel free to be cheap! I might be disappointed for a second, but I will quickly come to my senses and realize that you did actually donate. It will take me longer to get to my fundraising goal, but yeah, it's my problem obviously.

So until next week, don't break any bones!