Breaking Bad

This weekend was terrible. I skipped runs and ate like I was a bear going into hibernation. Bad, bad girl. This may not seem like a terrible thing to non runners, I know you all think regular running means you can eat anything you want, but considering I gained 10lbs training for my last Marathon...I am proof that it does NOT work that way.

So, this week is a fresh start. I have drank less wine...well, less than I wanted to, and have attempted an earlier bedtime. You notice I said "attempted". They say intention is half the battle so I am a half battle ahead!

Today, I managed to do one of my "Look Better Naked" workouts 1st thing this morning and then hit a run in town with my mom. I'm feeling pretty darn pleased with myself. That also spells trouble for me because I now want to reward myself with mass amounts of wine and eating like I am a bear going into hibernation. Vicious cycle isn't it?

A final note about the Women's Health Magazine fitness DVD "Look Better Naked"...I do believe you WILL look better naked if you complete even one of these workouts...you'll be dead, but the mortician is really going to appreciate the way you look.

-Cheers from the Vivác Winery Family!
www.VivacWinery.com

Up and at 'em!

Here is some advice...the night before your long run, don't drink excessively. Sit with that for a second, let it really soak in. Ya, seems like something you would KNOW, but it is harder said than done.

This is my long run day. Now you know what I was doing last night...drinking.

This morning I dressed in my running clothes and shuffled my slow moving feet around the house, drinking too much coffee. Work butted in and before I knew it, the day was leaving me in the hazy dust of my hang over. But I am aware that I can't skip runs, so I am still thinking I will be running today. I mean I'm still in my running clothes. I have until midnight technically, right?

I also realize that while I am typing this to all of you, I COULD be running. The wind is blowing seriously hard and it is freezing out so I will have to hit the evil treadmill. I'd jump on it now, but my son is watching a movie and wouldn't be able to hear...and that is just rude. I can't be rude.

You know they say "hair of the dog" is the way to attack a hang over, maybe I should pour a glass of wine. There is a bottle already open in the fridge. Come to think of it I'm hungry. You can't run on an empty stomach. Maybe a little cheese and prosciutto...which would go great with that open bottle of wine.

Yep, I need to "Fuel".

-Cheers from the Vivác Winery Family!
www.VivacWinery.com

Too Happy

Whenever you start something new, make a change for the better or challenge yourself, you will undoubtedly inspire and influence those around you. For some reason it has fallen heavy on my husband who I personally didn't think needed any more inspiration.

My hubby and his brother are avid runners with many Marathon races under their belts as well as races of other distances, but most importantly, they are amazing wine makers. Why is that MOST important? Because I drink copious amounts of wine and it helps me handle their perky attitudes about running. Forgive me, I digress...

Oh yes, inspiring my husband. He ran his 1st Ultra (53 miles) a year ago. The Ultra was not due to my inspiring him, but rather that he is insane. Now this year, watching me sign up for several races, I HAVE inspired him...inspired him to "Stretch himself". What does that mean you ask? Well, he will be running the half marathon (13.1 miles) I have on the calendar in the Spring (probably running it backwards for the extra challenge), followed by a Century (the Marathon of biking-100 miles long), followed by an off road (read as twice as hard) 50K (31.7 miles) at high altitude. The last 2 will be less than 2 weeks apart AND that is just to kick off 2014! Now if you are not sitting with your jaw in your lap, than you are high and need to reread that last section. FYI a full Marathon is 26.2 miles.

Why am I sharing this with you? Because it is important that you truly understand my misery. While I stand in the kitchen slugging down coffee, snarling at my family... he has started his day and training, not in my pathetic, slow, complaining way, but happily with 5AM alarms and freezing cold long runs! He returns bounding around the house, happy as a clam, lifting weights while getting ready for work. Thank God he is a wine maker or I might kill him over this obnoxious behavior. Of course I'm too sore from my training workout to have the strength to kill him, that and I'm not fast enough to catch him.

And so I leave you for today, raising my glass of Chardonnay with a shaking arm, and hope you never have to endure the torture of living with a RUNNER.

-Cheers from the Vivác Winery Family!
www.VivacWinery.com

Cross Train This

Cross training is an important part of my early training. For those of you that are not familiar with "cross training", this term refers to the process in which you torture yourself with other sports besides running.

Today I hit the road on our newly acquired road bike.  They say "it's just like riding a bike" to insinuate a great deal of ease. Whomever came up with that saying was not riding a road bike and had no experience with clipless pedals.  A side note about clipless pedals, why are they called that? You literally HAVE to clip your shoe into the damn thing! And there in lies the problem...once you are ruthlessly clipped into these hounds of hell, you need to become adept at escaping before crashing violently into the pavement. While upright you will need to battle the intense winds that threaten to blow you into oblivion, which seems incredibly easy on a road bike.

Biking aside, as I start training, I am reminded of 2 facts...1) I am always WAY more out of shape than I thought, and 2) Exercising gives me a powerful thirst. Both of which make me question my sanity. Why am I taking this on again?

Needless to say, at the end of our short ride, I was left with a mouth full of dirt...or in wine speak "terrior" and absolute jello arms & legs. Perhaps it is due to the earthy elements I tasted, perhaps it is the intense fear I experienced as I dodged dogs, cars & tumble weeds, but I arrived home ready for wine. I believe it will be a Cabernet Sauvignon.

I wonder if they make training wheels for adult bikes?

-Cheers from the Vivác Winery Family!
www.VivacWinery.com

2014, Let's Run Bitches!

At the end of 2013, I decided I needed to get back on track and running again. For me this means I had to sign up for a race. So 1st on the calendar was registering for the New York City Marathon (which is a lottery to get in, so keep your fingers crossed for me!) and by way of keeping my training focused I threw in a 1/2 marathon this spring.

NYC will be my 2nd full Marathon and my 1st that I will run solo. I must admit I am a little nervous about that part of it. I mean who will keep me from quitting or keep me on pace if my husband/ trainer isn't there giving me constant encouragement? I better have a giant bottle of wine waiting for me at the finish line as incentive.

So, as 2014 chimed in, I raised a shot of tequila in the air & toasted to a "Happy Newz Yearz" and chased it with a martini. I'm sure you have no idea why training was delayed come Jan 1st. BUT...being Jan 2nd, I'm feeling very optomistic about my training and this year to come. Of course I will be documenting the journey so all of you can experience my pain, happiness & the trill that is long distance running.

Cheers to 2014 everyone!

PS
Naturally I couldn't run today because I am still recovering from New Years. And I have dinner guests coming over...which required me to open a bottle of wine at lunch, to make a marinade, and what happens to a bottle of wine once it is open in our house? Well, we are REQUIRED to drink it!

-Cheers from the Vivác Winery Family!
www.vivacwinery.com

Fueled by Vivác Training Guide

While I continue to whimper in the corner over my hamstring, plenty of you are hitting the road with fabulous races. Instead of sulking, I would like to offer my support with Fueled by Vivác training tips!
The following races were selected because...well because I Googled "top fall marathons" and this list came up. If I missed your favorite, feel free to contact me and I will tailor training to you.

Detroit Free Press/ Talmer Bank Marathon: They claim you cross the Canadian boarder twice and run a mile under water (in a tunnel silly). To prepare for this race, it is essential to drink Vivác Pinot Noir the night before your long runs and our Diavolo for recovery. The Pinot is because Canada produces some incredible Pinots, the Diavolo is because you will be in Detroit...which some refer to as hell.

Nike Women's Marathon: Located in San Fran, this race includes a chocolate stop and Tiffany necklace at the finish. This race will require drinking our dry Rosé of Dolcetto before and after ALL training runs. Why so much of the pink stuff? Because girls supposedly like pink and this is a very girlie race...but they do allow men...if the men like pink.

Marine Corp Marathon: This race is located in Wash. D.C. and while I am sure it is beautiful, what they promote about it is that it is the "race for the people" with no big prizes for top finishers which draws more recreational runners. I don't know why they call it "Marine Corps" (obviously I didn't do much research) but the name makes me think this is going to be hard...like boot camp. So in preparation you will need to drink A LOT of our Divino the night prior to each training run...because you will be praying for your life at this race, and plenty of our Syrah for recovery because it sorta sounds like "Simper fi".

ING New York City Marathon: This marathon is harder to get into than...something really hard to get into! Based on lottery, your admittance to this race really is...well...winning the lotto, until you realize you have to run 26.2 miles (some lotto you just won right?). This race will require our Nebbiolo both pre and post long runs. Why the Nebbiolo you ask? Because we often don't have the Nebbiolo grape due to late freeze so getting your hands on this wine will feel like you won the lotto...again.

Anthem Richmond Marathon: Called the friendliest marathon, this race sounds delightful and offers junk food on the course! You will need to train with copious amounts of our Dolcetto red wine. Dolcetto is an amazing pairing with many junk food combinations and while I don't know what will be offered on the course, Dolcetto will likely be the wine for it. In fact, I recommend that you fill your hydration belt with Dolcetto for the race.

Philadelphia Marathon: A combination of city sights and river paths, this race sounded lovely...until they suggested that at the finish line I should run up and down the steps of the Art Museum like "Rocky". After I run 26.2 miles I am trying to will my sausage legs to the booze tent NOT running up and down stairs. I found that suggestion insulting. So for training I recommend focusing on the historical nature of the city sights and recommend our Cabernet Sauvignon, a classic of wines, for training. Cab should be drank prior to ALL runs and preferably with reading glasses on...to look scholarly. For the "Rocky" fans you should drink our Fire Vineyard blend, it is bold and comes from hearty rootstock.

Some might balk at the amount of wine recommended in our Fueled by Vivác training, but remember that all of the professionals out there say the #1 thing to do is drink plenty of fluids!

-Cheers from the Vivác Winery Family!
www.VivacWinery.com

True Love

When you are really in love, even the mundane stuff is fun. That's how I knew Running and I had slipped into that comfortable spot in our relationship.

I eagerly stepped onto my home treadmill and happily started my run...while facing a wall. Ya, I was going to run on a treadmill facing a blank wall. This is what most people think of as Hell, but I actually didn't mind. I focused on my body and worked on my stride. I felt the muscles work and made adjustments to my body for better form. That's when I felt that prickle up my spine, that feeling that something was off. There was an obvious favoring of my right leg. I could feel my left leg compensating. Why, Running? Why are you acting like this?

Sometimes it is when you are the most comfortable that a relationship can turn on you. I'm not sure why Running wanted to hurt me, it seemed as if it came out of nowhere! I let my shock take over and as if on autopilot, I decided I'd ignore the elephant in the room. That never works by-the-way, it just makes things awkward, and now things were awkward with Running.

Even my favorite running path couldn't cover up the awkwardness in our relationship. Now it wasn't just a matter of looking the other way, hoping Running's bad mood would pass. Now it was turning into an issue. At this point it would have been a good idea to be upfront with Running, find out what was wrong. I did not go that route. I decided to give Running some time off, some alone time. As the days ticked by, I found myself thinking about Running all the time...was Running thinking about me too?

3 days later and no word from Running (what a jerk right?), I still had this unresolved issue that Running left me with, it was starting to take over everything I did, and Running couldn't care less! At this point I was getting mad, and I don't behave very well when I am hurt and mad. So the next time I passed by the treadmill...I flipped it off. Yep, I seriously know how to get under the skin of inanimate objects.

Then I felt bad. You know how you feel after being lame to your partner when you are fighting and then you give in and apologize even though it was clearly their fault in the 1st place? You know a 'guilt apology'. Well after flipping off the treadmill, I decided to grow up and take the initiative with Running.

I decided another treadmill-facing-a-blank-wall date was in order, an easy date that I could duck out of easily if Running was still mad at me. I started to unfold the treadmill and it pinched my finger badly! Evidently it had not appreciated my clever finger salute. While this was a clear sign I was venturing down a scary path, I ignored the signs and proceeded.

A short date later, it was clear...Running and I had some issues. I decided to come clean and be direct. Ask the questions that scared me the most. What I found out was revolutionary. Running wasn't mad at me, in fact we were in love more than before, but my baggage had come between us again.

We have decided to get a professional involved, couples therapy, someone who can help me stop self sabotaging with heavy heel strikes or upper body twisting. Some relationships are worth fighting for and for me, Running might be True Love.

*Today's blog is brought to you by Vivác's Cabernet Sauvignon, because as with great relationships, this wine always comes through for you.

-Cheers from the Vivác Winery Family!
www.VivacWinery.com