Run, Karla, Run!

Karla and Cinderella run in the snow. Photo by Phil Hospod.

It was a cold and snowy Thanksgiving morning in rural Quebec, where I spent my holiday. The night before, a snowstorm blanketed the farmland around me, and a haze of flurries continued to drift down. It was white as far as the eye could see from the hilltop where I was perched. But I had to do it. I had to go for a run.

I’d pledged to run at least a mile a day from Thanksgiving to New Year’s Day as part of the Runner’s World Holiday Running Streak. A little Canadian snow wasn’t going to stop me. Now two weeks in, my streak is still going strong.

I can’t believe I’ve made it this far. This streak represents the most days I’ve ever run consecutively, my previous record being a measly—and more normal—six days in a row. It’s been a smooth ride for the most part, but there have been a few close calls. Like the night I ran home from dinner—at 10 p.m. and in street clothes with steak and creamed spinach jiggling in my stomach—because I had completely forgotten to run earlier in the day. Whoops! But I was determined to keep the streak alive, so I did what must be done. Read the rest of this entry →

Photo by Graham Horn

Oh winter. It’s my least favorite time of year. I know, the holidays are magical with the twinkle lights and the parties and the food. Mmm, the food. But the holidays can be challenging for a runner, especially if you live in the northern half of the country, or the world, for that matter. Temperatures drop, snow accumulates, days darken, parties are plentiful, and the reasons not to head out for a run become pretty easy to come by.

So the folks over at Runner’s World have cooked up a cure. Meghan G. Loftus, who writes the RW Training Daily blog, is leading the charge with a Holiday Running Streak. She’s pledging to run at least a mile a day, every day from Thanksgiving to New Year’s Day. And she’s looking for runners to join her. Read the rest of this entry →

Runners in Brooklyn's Prospoect Park. Photo by Karla Bruning.

Brooklyn is toeing the line. The inaugural Brooklyn Marathon kicks off on Sunday, Nov. 20 at 8 a.m. in Prospect Park. In the tradition of New York City marathons, this one has humble roots. The race is capped at 350 runners and the course is contained entirely in Prospect Park, the crown jewel of the borough’s park system. But founder Steve Lastoe hopes it’s just the beginning for this fledgling race.

“I want a race that’s organically part of Brooklyn,” Lastoe said on The New York Running Show, a podcast where I’m, at times, a panelist. “I want this race to be loved by Brooklyn.”

New York City could certainly use another marathon. The ING New York City marathon, the largest in the world, had more than 148,000 applicants for its 45,000 spots in the 2011 race. The demand amongst runners is plentiful, but the supply isn’t. Read the rest of this entry →

Photo courtesy of New York Road Runners.

The ING New York City Marathon on Sunday, Nov. 6 gave us two truly exciting races in both the men’s and women’s competitions. Three runners shattered—and I mean shattered—the course record in the men’s competition. And one runner gave a guts-on-the-floor performance that likely cost her the race in the women’s competition. Scroll down for athlete interviews, stats and more as I was ringside in the Timex Media Center at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel in Columbus Circle, giving a behind the scenes play-by-play of what it’s like in the press room as a New York Road Runners Social Media Reporter. Here’s how it went:

8:30 am: Good morning! I’m here in the Timex Media Center at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel in New York City. We are one minute away from the wheelchair start of the 2011 ING New York City Marathon! Read the rest of this entry →

The start of the ING New York City Marathon. Photo by Fergal Carr.

For the first time since 2007, I’m not running a marathon. It feels a little odd, especially as the ING New York City Marathon approaches on Sunday, Nov. 6. I’ve run the race three times—each to a personal best. When I ran Chicago instead in 2009, I was out on the course cheering for my friends who were running the Big Apple.

Not one to idly let the marathon pass me by, I’ll still be participating in another way this year. New York Road Runners recruited me to be one of their Social Media Reporters. I’m teaming up with NYRR TV’s The Daily Cool Down hosted by Olympian Carrie Tollefson—a daily recap show of all the hustle and bustle surrounding marathon week—on Friday night and Saturday, tweeting as they run around the city capturing the excitement of marathon weekend. Then on race day, I’ll be blogging live from the marathon media center, sharing what’s really going on behind the scenes of the world’s biggest marathon. Read the rest of this entry →

Photo courtesy of runDisney.

8,268 finishers. 13.1 miles. Three theme parks. And one magical race. This self-proclaimed Disney girl—my dog’s name is Cinderella after all—finally did it. I ran my first runDisney race. Disney’s Wine & Dine Half Marathon on Oct. 1 did not disappoint. It was everything the little girl in me hoped it would be.

Leading up to the race, I’d taken my training rather seriously; running a personal best was definitely on my mind. But other runners who had done Disney races warned me otherwise. Disney races are too much fun, they said. You’ll want to stop and have your photo taken with characters, they said. You’ll be too taken-in by the music and spirit on the course, they said.

Well, they were right. Read the rest of this entry →

The USATF Fall Running Lookbook

You may have seen them at road races around the country. But now you can see them in the USATF 2011 Fall Running Lookbook. The team behind Driving the Sport, USA Track & Field’s program to promote the sport of running at races all over America, has put together a snazzy, not un-J.Crew-esque “Lookbook” featuring the latest USATF Nike gear and starring none other than the “Driving the Sport” team members themselves.

Driving the Sport is a program aimed at promoting running and race walking all over the country. Their three colorfully painted vehicles—Dash, Miles and Stretch—are making stops at races like the 75th Annual Cowboy Jamboree in Oklahoma, the Bank of America Chicago Marathon and the Big East Championships in Kentucky. Manned by fresh-faced twenty-somethings, they’re selling USATF merchandise and memberships to support USATF programs and events, blogging their exploits and tweeting up a storm. Race directors can even put in a request for one of the vehicles to make a pit-stop at their event.

For those of us who won’t have a chance to see them at an expo near us, the Fall Running Lookbook will have to do. The Lookbook’s USATF Nike gear includes singlets, tights, shorts, half-zip pull-overs, hats, arm-warmers, shoes and more. You can purchase any of the Lookbook merchandise at USATF.org. All proceeds go toward funding USATF initiatives from youth activies to elite athelte development and even Team USA itself.

Melanie Jones in 'Endure.' Photo courtesy of 'Endure.'

Since the massive success of British theater troupe PunchDrunk’s “Sleep No More”—a meandering mash-up of “Macbeth” and ‘30s film-noir—immersive theater has taken New York City by storm. With audience members set loose in a space, free to roam and interact with the actors at will, it makes sense that someone would think to adapt this theater form to a show about running.

Melanie Jones, a Canadian playwright, actress and dancer, has done just that. Freed from the confines of a traditional theater, “Endure: A Run Woman Show” poses the question, “What if the race of your life is your life?” Well then, you better wear your running shoes. Read the rest of this entry →

Every athlete has probably dreamed of saying those five little words we’ve seen in Super Bowl and other sports commercials since 1987. My turn has finally come.

I’m going to Disney World!

Come 10 p.m. on Saturday night, I’ll be at the start of the Disney Wine & Dine Half Marathon with 12,000 other runners. As I work my way from the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex through Animal Kingdom, Hollywood Studios, Disney’s Yacht and Beach Club Resorts and finally to Epcot, I’ll be wearing a new pair of shoes. Naturally, a certain Disney character comes to mind.

Like Cinderella, runners are all about the shoes—running shoes, gym shoes, racing flats, sneakers, kicks, trainers, five-fingers, um, glass slippers. It doesn’t matter what you call them. A runner’s shoe (or lack thereof) is their calling card, their single most important piece of equipment. Like Cinderella, we’re often identified by what type of shoe we wear—Nike vs. Adidas, stability vs. neutral, minimalist vs. barefoot. Read the rest of this entry →

Fifth Avenue Mile Start

Down Fifth Avenue

Men 40-49

Professional Women

Sally Kipyego of Kenya

Jenny Simpson and Morgan Uceny chase Kipyego

Jenny Simpson makes a move

The 1500-Meter Mark

Jenny Simpson Wins

Hannah England and Sally Kipyego finish third and second after a photo finish

Simpson's Victory Lap

Simpson Dressed in Star and Stripes

Here come the pro men

The Lead Pack

Lagat kicks, chasing down Laalou and Torrence

David Torrence Finishes Third

Amine Laalou Finishes Second

Bernard Lagat Wins

Lagat's Victory Lap

Call Me Kip, Lagat's Nickname

The Fifth Ave Mile Finish

Photos by Phil Hospod

Olympians, World Champions and thousands of regular runners alike barreled down New York City’s Fifth Avenue in the Fifth Avenue Mile on Saturday, Sept. 24. The professional field this year was a doozy, with eight Olympians and four 2011 World Championship medalists among them. But what is it about running a mile that keeps runners, including professionals like Bernard Lagat, so entranced? Read the rest of this entry →

Growing up in the Chicago suburbs, I was a YMCA kid. I spent countless afternoons as a child going to Mommy and Me swim classes, Swim and Gym, and then swim team when I was a bit older. I’d run on the Y’s indoor track, play Horse on the basketball court, and hang out with friends in the rec room.

Here in New York City, the YMCA wants all of our city’s kids to lead active, healthy lives. The West Side Y is sponsoring the Fit For All 5K to fund free programs for kids.

My mom was a single parent with a limited budget who couldn’t necessarily afford the swim team fees in addition to a family Y membership. But she knew the importance of getting your kids into activities, and specifically physical activities. So she took a part-time job at our local YMCA as a lifeguard in order to get free Y membership for our family. She did that on top of other jobs she held, like working as a secretary, waitress, and much else.

I have her to thank for being a fit adult now. Read the rest of this entry →

For all of us who run in New York City, the public green spaces like Central Park, Prospect Park, and the Greenway that rings Manhattan are lifesavers. But on the East Side, from 38th Street to 60th Street, the Greenway still hasn’t become a reality. As an East Sider, I have long lamented this gap and envied the West Side for their continuous esplanades and rec lanes as I’ve literally run rings around the city.

On Tuesday, September 20, we the people have a chance to make our voices heard and help finish the Greenway. New York Road Runners’ President and CEO Mary Wittenberg has written an open letter to New York’s runners to help get the job done. Let’s make our voices heard and finish the Greenway! As runners who log countless miles around the island, we’ll all benefit from this–not just the residents of the East Side.

Dear East Side Runners, You have the opportunity to affect change on the East Side of Manhattan. This Tuesday, September 20, is the final public forum for the East Side Open Space project, which could help runners, especially East Side residents, so I have to tell you about it. Read the rest of this entry →

Machu Picchu. Photo by Pedro Szekely,

Every now and then I hear about a race that is extraordinary. For those who really want to travel and run, the Inca Trail Marathon 26.2 Mile Race takes running travel to a whole new level—literally. Debuting in July 2012, the marathon is the first 26.2-mile race along the Inca Trail.

Traversing the footpath the ancient Incas used to travel between Cusco, Peru and the world famous citadel of Machu Picchu, the Inca Trail Marathon travels a measured 26.2-mile course that reaches an elevation of 13,800 feet and usually takes the typical hiker 3 days to complete. Runners will have just 11 hours. But the payoff is worth it: a photo finish in front of Machu Picchu. Read the rest of this entry →

Runners feast at the 2010 Disney Wine & Dine Half Marathon. Photo courtesy of runDisney.

Ask Miles of Runner’s World recently posed an age old question: Is it better to run a lot but eat poorly, or eat healthy and not exercise at all? Dr. Bill Roberts, RW’s “Ask the Sports Doc” blogger, answered: “I would think that heavy exercise will compensate better for a poor diet than a perfect diet will compensate for no exercise.” Phew!

I run because I love to eat. Sure there are other nobler reasons why I run—because I can, because it keeps me fit, blah blah blah—but I’m not going to lie: eating is probably top three. And eating healthy while training for a race is important. But what if the race has “Wine & Dine” in the title? While training for the Disney Wine & Dine Half Marathon on Oct. 1, I’m finding that eating healthy is easier said than done. Read the rest of this entry →