Running feels so good

It's been a week since my last run.  Today, I decided since I was off of work at 2 that I should go run.  It was definitely a nice day on the bay.  The sun was out, the weather was nice.  I wasn't planning on trying to beat my mile run from last week which was 11 minutes but I shockingly surprised myself today.  I'm going to assume my time was so good because I had healthy food for breakfast and lunch, drank a good amount of water and had 8 hours of sleep. My mile run today was 8:06 minutes.  AMAZING!!!! And, I was running against the wind.  My goal for my new workout schedule was to try and run a mile under 8 minutes.  I thought it would take me months to achieve this time. I am so stoked with my time.  Question is, will I be able to achieve close to the same time the next time I run.
 

Books, books, books

Books are amazing when you really get into it.  Not having a television set for the last 2 years has been amazing and frustrating at times especially living in San Leandro.  After the death of my television a couple of years back, I was contemplating about buying myself a really fancy 32" Samsung LCD TV. I am glad I came to my senses and opted out of having a brain drain machine.  I realized these past years how much hours I had spend in front of it.  I could have done more meaning work during that time but instead I was being bombarded with advertisements telling me I am not worth much unless I bought their products.  I am still a loyal watcher of several shows, which i watch online, but my television time only occurs when I go back home to Morgan Hill.  This said, I have now put all my time and energy buying books and attempting to read them.  i might have an obsession with the buying part. 


Today, with a gift card at hand i received during the holiday, walked inside a Barnes and Noble Bookstore with an intention to buy one specific book, "Gone Tomorrow: The Hidden life of Garbage" by Heather Rogers.  Unfortunately, they did not carry this book in this specific location.  So, I ended up walking through the whole store picking up books I found interesting.  I do this on a regular basis when I visit a book store and in the end decide which books I will purchase.  I had 6 books at hand, mostly environmental books and two about German Shepherds and training dogs (I have to prepare myself for my dog).  After 2 hours at the store, I finally walked out with amazing books that I cant wait to get started on.  The problem with me is that i buy so much books but don't really take the initiative to pick them up and read the whole thing.  I haven't even finished reading the "Omnivore's Dilemma" which I have been trying to read the last 2 months (I'm hoping to finish it soon).  I also realized that I have an obsession of buying books about food (where it comes from, how its made, the health issues, etc.)  Which brought me to the books I purchased today.  "The End of Food", "The Face on Your Plate", "In Defense of Food" , a book about dog training.  I recommend, NO, require everyone to read "The Omnivores Dilemma" or "Fast Food Nation."  It will truly open up your eyes.  Reading these books made my choice very easy. I'm ranting about food once again.  Back to the topic.  My plan is to pick up a book and read everyday for atleast an hour.  I need the stimulation and information to truly keep me occupied.


If you know any good book suggestions, please share!! 
  

Heron Bay Run

As part of my New Years resolution, I plan on being active once again.  My first official day was today.  I am lucky enough to live in close proximity to Heron Bay in San Leandro which is also a bird sanctuary.  It was very hard to get myself out the door to go for a run.  I have to admit, that during the past 2 weeks, I have every opportunity to run but was too lazy. What makes it worse is that the weather was amazing!!!  It's too late to whine about what I could have done.

Today, after getting off work at 2, decided to go running (more like jogging.. ok.. more like run.. walk.. run.. walk.. run).  I think I did pretty damn well considering the last time I went running was in June.  The total distance of my trip was 3.5 miles. It took a while for my body to warm up considering it was freezing cold outside with no sign of the sun in sight.  After I reached my halfway mark, I decided to time my mile run (thanks to markers on the paths).  My time was 11:01.8. With my goal of mimicking Jillian Michael's abs and legs, I plan to significantly reduce this time by atleast 3 minutes.  In high school, I was able to run one mile in 7:30 min. and I plan to get as close to that time as possible.  Still no where near that time but I hope that I can atleast be able to run 2 miles straight without any stopping.  Only time will tell.  

The trail I jog is also on the bay.. very beautiful... minus all the homes the the back.