I Love Running Topless with Tunes in a Girly Skirt

Yep, I really do. Guys, get your mind out of the gutter. I’m not out there shaking my boobs for everyone to see, no matter how much you wish that were the case, LOL. Running topless=running bra only. I think this will be my new Season of Topless Speed!   Because, honestly, when it’s hot and it’s humid, what is the point of a shirt anyway?  A towel that you wear as clothing? POINTLESS.  I run much faster without it (if you don’t believe me, see my time below.)

Today was Track Tuesday.  I’ve started something new at track practice. Running with my iPod. I figure, I’m usually runing by myself anyway, so why not motivate myself by actually listening to music, rather than trying to get a song going through my head just before I arrive, and then use my mental playback powers? You know what? It totally makes a difference.

I’ve decided to start following the mid-distance workouts, rather than those for the folks running long distance, so I can really focus on speed. Tonight’s workout was 6  300s, with active recovery of 200 shuffle, or as I call it “the old lady jog, where it looks like you’re running, but really you’re not because both feet are always touching the ground.”  Water break, then repeat, for a total of 12. While some people hate the shorter distances, I absolutely love them because for me, it’s basically a sprint.

Average 300 meters without tunes: 1:15-1:16. (First 4 done wearing a shirt/top.)

Average 300 meters with tunes: 1:11, with my fastest being the last one, at 1:09. (All done topless.)

Best two songs for this evening: Your Love is My Drug, by Ke$ha, and Untouched, by the Veronicas.

Tonight, I also tried out one of two new running skirts I bought last Saturday when I picked up my number for the half marathon. I figured, we got 13.1% off of what we bought that night, so why not pick up one?  Ok, how about two?

PR Mesh Skort (photo from Brooks Running)

The one I wore tonight is by Brooks, and it’s called the PR Mesh Skort. I gotta say, I loved it!!  I bought it in an XS because there is no drawstring around the waist, unlike the Nike one I bought (in a small.)  The shorts underneath didn’t ride up at all. The mesh definitely makes the fabric pretty breathable, so my fear of overheating never actually became a reality. (Truth be told, that’s why I’ve never work a running skirt before.  I figured wearing two layers would get too hot. It was about 80-82 tonight when we had practice.) 

There is a pocket in the back that will take some getting used to – it’s not as deep as I’d like, but I figure for races of 5 miles or less, I can get by with just one packet of sports beans so it should be enough. It closes with a zipper, which makes me feel good about storing a car key in it too. 

Oh, an added bonus – it’s girly!  Just my own personal opinion, but it appears to be more flattering to the figure than the shorts we ladies get to wear to run.  So here’s what I say, ladies:  we work hard for these legs, we might as well show them, LOL!    There is a retired gentleman who is part of our track workouts, whose name is Bob. I told him I was trying out the skirt tonight in case I run a race on Saturday, and because he’s kind of injured, he was hanging out with our two lady coaches. He yelled out “nice skirt!!” at one point, and then he told me he got some good-natured grief from the coaches.  He was like “she’s trying it out, I gotta tell her it looks good!”

Too bad I can’t wear it in a race I just got an email about, called the Ladies Night Out at the Great Leg Road Race, in Lowell, MA.  (I’ll be out of town.)

P.S. from Wednesday a.m.  My only bad news is that I think I might have plantar fasciitis again. For those of you who have never had this, thank your deity of your choice.  It felt better as I warmed up and ran more last night, but walking Ruthie this morning, it felt like someone was stabbing me through the bottom of my foot. I even wore that ugly-ass night splint all last night too. Felt ok when I got up, but the walk this morning was hell!

 

The good, the bad, and ugly

Two runs, in two days. Couldn’t have been more diametrically opposed from each other if they tried.

Thursday was awesome. I set a PR for myself with the 5-mile distance.  46:40, average pace of 9:20.  That’s better by at least two minutes. Not bad considering the second mile is a lot of ups and downs. It’s also when the sunrise began, and Untouched by the Veronicas came up on my iPod. Explains why that was my second fastest mile, even in 23 arctic degrees!  The rest of my route is pretty flat, but still I do run early in the morning so I was happy that my sleepy brain and legs could keep on going.   The sunrise was gorgeous. I think because it was so cold, it made the color stripes appear more crisp than normal. They were pink and green (preppy colors!)

Yesterday was not so great. The first two miles were just fine, pretty decent anyway, and it was in the 30s so I was down to two layers in the morning – wahoo! However, once I got to my turnaround point, you know, as far away from my house as I could be, suddenly I didn’t feel so good. On my way back, I looked longingly at the swamp/wetland I passed (you know it’s not good when that’s the case), and probably would have used them if they weren’t literally off the side of the road, and I was wearing white! (Yeah,  not great camoflauge.)  I also passed some kids waiting for the bus, and toyed with the idea of asking if I could use their bathroom in their house, but then I was thinking, they’d look at me as if I was a weirdo.

Oh, and earlier in the run when I reached down for my sports beans, what do you think I left at home?!  So, anyway, I found out yesterday, my body felt worse when running than walking, so I pretty much speedwalked home as fast as I could.  Ah well. It was a shorter run anyway, so at least I didn’t have any other major problems!

Anyway, I have to get ready to go meet some friends for a quick 5 mile run this morning and then get home to pack for D.C.  It’s supposed to be in the mid-60s there this week, and seriously I don’t know if I’d even know how to dress for that kind of weather right now, it’s been so long!