These are a few of my favorite things

Okay, healthful, you win; however, I still maintain that as a word, you are pretty useless (as opposed to useful, ha!) and even if you do date back to the 14th century I still refuse to incorporate you into my vocabulary because healthy is a much better word and conveys the same meaning as you. So there.

I feel better now, not only because I can still claim some sort of ambiguous moral superiority by not using a word that I loathe, but also because I have acknowledged that the word exists, which makes me fair and balanced. Thanks, Rebecca, for making me see the error of my ways.

So healthful is not one of my favorite things. But being healthy is. I just love it. So I set a healthy goal for myself in order to increase my daily amount of health: try to eat 5 fruits and vegetables a day. This is so much harder than it sounds, but I am making a healthy effort.

In other favorite things news, Team in Training running starts tomorrow! This is a favorite thing for a number of reasons:

1. It involves running. Enough said.
2. Meeting new people! I cannot wait to meet other people who are training for a marathon or a half-marathon!
3. It is raising money for research on Leukemia and Lymphoma. Don't forget that you can be a part of this too, just click here!

Today is also a yoga day. Ahh, yoga. I don't think there are words that could possibly express how much I love yoga. There is really nothing that is quite like it. It is truly amazing. So yoga this afternoon, and then a nice run. I finally got a run in yesterday (thank you, Nike clock for kicking my butt into gear) and felt good immediately afterwards. Actually immediately after I started. I also realized something that makes me really happy and proud of myself: I have dropped about a minute off of my per mile pace. That's right, old Emilie "Ten-minute mile" Littlehales is finally speeding up! It's amazing what a little marathon training will do for you. Now, this is not to say that the next time I run 20 miles they will all be nine-minute miles. But I have definitely improved in a way that is quantifiable, and I think that is worth a huzzah. So huzzah!

Another day...without a run

Okay, this is getting ridiculous and at this point I guess I don't really have anyone to blame but myself. I did end up finding the clock I was referring to yesterday, and here it is just to confirm that I don't dream things up and then run off at the mouth about them on the internet. I'm not that far gone.

I also found this neat little feature. I guess if that doesn't get you moving, nothing really will and you just have to accept the fact that you are sort of a loser.

So I guess now I have no excuse not to get my butt in gear...except the reading for my class at 2, and the reading for my class at 4, and...at least I managed to get my laundry done and plan today's class. I call that a win. Victory reward: a nice, long, worry-free run.

Do it.

Just for you, Mom.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lmUZGdi7Ty4

Enjoy!

Exercise withdrawal

Two new things I learned today:

1. withdrawal is not spelled withdrawl. I always get confused about this. And then when I realize it is not withdrawl I wonder how I could have been so stupid as to think that it would be spelled that way anyway. I mean, English can be pretty strange as a language, but it is generally not that strange.
2. withdrawment, though you would not think it was a word (it probably isn't. It is probably an error made on the part of some vacuous and yet wildly popular person that somehow made it into our--admittedly flawed--vernacular. I am thinking of words like 'healthful'. Not a word, people. The word is healthy. Please stop with the healthful already. I mean it)...anyway, though you would not think it is a word, it actually is.

At any rate, exercise withdrawal is lou-sy. I haven't had a chance to go running since last Thursday, and I don't understand how it is possible to take a break after a marathon and still manage to maintain your mental health and personal relationships. Personally, I feel a little bit like biting the head off of anyone who casts a sidelong glance in my direction. Somehow I don't think that sort of reaction most people expect (let alone want) when they look at someone.

Solution to the problem? Simple, right? Go running, you silly girl. Easier said than done. All of a sudden, there is not a single five-minute period in the day that I have to myself. And a good run would require at least a good thirty minutes, minimum. There was, at one point, a Nike ad that had one of those "Be back at..." clocks that you see hanging in shop windows and the point was basically, "Hey, go running, the world can wait for you to get back." I guess Nike is right. I need to just do it. Unless I want to start biting heads off of people. I think I'll leave that to someone else, though, to be honest.

Welcome to my blog!

So I have finally decided to join the legions on bloggers, all those people out there with computers, internet connections, and important things to say. Why shouldn't I be one them?

In November of 2007, I accomplished a lifelong goal by running the Philadelphia Marathon. Throughout my training I repeatedly thought to myself that it would be fun to have a blog and record what I was going through while preparing to run 26.2 miles. Well, that blog idea never panned out; however, while I was training, I decided to choose a second marathon. I chose to train with Team in Training, and I am hoping to run the Paris Marathon in April 2008 (provided I raise enough money to do so. If you want to donate, go to this website: www.active.com/donate/tntnyc/tntnycELittle). This time, I want to try and record all the ups, downs, and in-betweens. That way I will have more than just pictures and memories to look back on when I am in my thirties and my knees no longer function!

I hope you'll check back often.