Boston Marathon: The Music That Wasn't

I put together a playlist for the Boston Marathon and then ended up not using it. At all. The Boston Marathon is a 26.2 mile block party. There were so many entertaining things along the way.

In hindsight, I hope these songs had turned up.

Foo Fighters - My Hero. This one is for all the police, emergency responders, medical people, volunteers, spectators, and average people who stepped up when they were needed.

Nine Inch Nails and Carly Rae Jepson - Call Me a Hole mashup - Upbeat music from Call Me Maybe. Dark lyrics from Head Like a Hole. "No, you can't take that away from me."

Katy Perry - Part of Me - "This is the part of me that you are never gonna ever take away from me." Notice a recurring theme here?

Switchfoot - Meant to Live - "We were meant to live for so much more and we lost ourselves. Somewhere we live inside."

Switchfoot - We Are One Tonight - "The world is flawed. These scars will heal. We are one tonight."

Switchfoot - Dare You to Move - "I dare you to move. I dare you to lift yourself up off the floor." For me, this song has always been about hope. It is one of the highlights of any Switchfoot concert. The most recent time I saw it performed live was frontman Jon Foreman singing solo, acoustic, with the crowd singing along. Amazing.

Switchfoot - Dark Horses - "I've got my scars. I've been to hell and back again. Born for the blue skies. We'll survive the rain. Born for the sunrise. We'll survive the pain."

The Bravery - Fearless. Good message. Peppy beat.

Rihanna - Diamonds. "Shine bright like a diamond." Boston, shine bright like a diamond.

Journey - Don't Stop Believin' - I associate this song with Boston, due to its use in the 2004 baseball post-season. In case you don't remember 2004, it was the year that the Boston Red Sox were 1 out away from elimination and came back to win the World Series for the first time since 1918.

Pearl Jam - The Fixer - "When something's lost, I want to fight to get it back again ... When something's broke, I want to put a bit of fixing on it ... When there's no love, I want to try to love again ... Yeah yeah yeah. Fight to get it back again."

Chris Brown - Beautiful People - "Everywhere that I go, the only thing I see is beautiful people ... Live your life ... The beauty's deep inside you. Don't let 'em bring you down. The beauty is inside of you."

Shoulda had Sweet Caroline, although I did hear it somewhere out on the course.

Boston Marathon Playlist

It's that time to pull my marathon playlist together. The more and more I think about it, I may not even run with my iPod. But we'll see. It will be a marathon-eve or gameday decision.

I take my playlist from my previous marathon, cut any song that I didn't like during the race or am just tired off, add new songs, and pick some songs that are location-specific. King of New Orleans made on my playlist for New Orleans. Ocean songs made it onto my playlist for Virginia Beach.

Here are some new editions. I've been on an 80s kick, thanks to the Depeche Mode station on Pandora.

Ellie Goulding - Lights
Information Society - What's On Your Mind (Pure Energy)
Linkin Park - Burn It Down
Talk Talk - Life's What You Make It
Bruno Mars - Locked Out of Heaven
Christina Aguilera - Your Body
Rihanna - Diamonds

The Boston-specific song are an interesting mix. If I could live anywhere, I would live in Boston. Hands down. Despite that, I have a love-hate relationship with Boston. See, I have an ex-boyfriend who, as far as I know, is in Boston. Things between us didn't end well at all. I am going back to Boston College this summer for a college reunion. There are some events around this time of year that are kicking up old memories. Physically being in Boston, especially in April, magnifies all of that. Having said that, the ex-boyfriend and anything that reminds me of him motivate me to run harder, not give up, push through discomfort, and I am stronger than I ever imagined. So there will be Boston songs, Boston College songs, bad relationship songs, and anything that helped me get through the 2007-2008 academic year (related to dealing with the ex-boyfriend). Bring it, Boston.

Dropkick Murphys - I'm Shipping Up to Boston (was already on my playlist from Shamrock/Gansett)
Seal - Fly like an Eagle (Go Boston College Eagles!)
Taylor Swift - We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together
Switchfoot - Dare You to Move
Nine Inch Nails - The Hand That Feeds
Pearl Jam - Evenflow (live from Boston May 2006 ... yes, I was there)
The Standells - Dirty Water (played at the end of Boston Red Sox games)
Foo Fighters - The Pretender
Nine Inch Nails & Carley Rae Jepson - Call Me A Hole - I cannot even tell you how brilliant this mash-up is. It is NIN's vocals with the instrumentals/beat from Call Me Maybe. Dark lyrics with an upbeat tune? Perfect for Boston.
Foo Fighters - Best of You
Katy Perry - Part of Me (already on my playlist from Gansett, but also fits with the bad relationship theme)

Gansett Marathon Playlist

This is so behind the game that it isn't funny. I wrote the playlist down over a month ago and then didn't have a chance to update with my thoughts. Oops. After Shamrock, I assembled the random mishmosh of songs that I had during the marathon into a playlist and matched it to my Garmin map. I don't care enough to do that for Gansett. It's interesting enough that I am posting it anyway. Some songs work. Some songs don't. The ones that don't work get eliminated from future playlists. And then some songs surprise you. I never know which songs will end up being really helpful until I am out there.

Here's what my iPod picked me for the second half of the Gansett Marathon. It is in order, except for the 1st 7 songs. Songs with (S) are repeaters from Shamrock.

U2- Get on Your Boots. I think I knew this song was going to be first when I cued up my playlist.
U2 - Beautiful Day. I have a love-hate relationship with this song. No strong feelings about having it for Gansett, though.
Foo Fighters - Bridge Burning (S). I am keeping this song on future playlists.
Billy Idol - Rebel Yell. This song makes it onto every single running playlist. It saved me at mile 23 of Chicago.
Elvis Presley JXL Radio Edit Remix - A Little Less Conversation. This song is fun. Kinda like the Fraggle Rock songs.
Kevin Rudolf - I Made It (S). Haha, not yet.
The Naked and Famous - Young Blood. This song did not make the cut for earlier playlists. It made a return for Gansett.
Sean Kingston - Fire Burning (S). Keeper.
Chris Brown - Turn Up the Music (S). Yep, keeper again.
Dropkick Murphys - Captain Kelly's Kitchen. I tried to skip this song because I couldn't remember why I had it on my playlist. I thought the button on my headphones that skipped ahead to the next song, but the button paused my iPod instead. Oh well. Just go with it.
The Police - Everything Little Thing She Does is Magic
Switchfoot - The War Inside. Clever, iPod. This was around the point where I started bargaining with myself to keep running. Just run til the end of this song and you can take a break. Walk a little and start up again. Repeat.
Pitbull w/ Chris Brown - International Love. I can see myself getting tired of this song, but we'll see.
The Verve - Bittersweet Symphony. I remember hearing this song but didn't have any particular thoughts about it.
Switchfoot - Meant To Live. Not the first time this song has helped me in a race.
Journey - Don't Stop Believin'. Definitely a message you want to hear in a marathon.
Fraggle Rock - Stuff Samba. Short and upbeat and has the line "Do the stuff you've always done before."
Civil Twilight - Fire Escape. This was a new find through Pandora.
Lady Gag - Judas. Here because of the beat.
Incubus - Dig (S). Still love this song.
Switchfoot - Rise Above It. Good message for a marathon.
Hanson - Can't Stop. (S) Oh, you were really clever, iPod, picking this song again just like you did at the end of Shamrock.
Darshan (from the Bend It Like Beckham soundtrack). I like the beat of this song. I don't even think it is in English.
Switchfoot - The Sound. One of my favorite Switchfoot songs.
Pearl Jam - The Fixer. Yeah yeah yeah.
Katy Perry - Part of Me. This song was making me angry, but it might be one of the surprise helpful songs. I found myself thinking, "How badly do you want it?" I said out loud "I want it" and started running again.
Fitz & the Tantrums - Money Grabber. Kinda don't have any strong feelings about this song either. Has a good beat.
Fraggle Rock - Pass It On. Skipped. Just wasn't feeling it at the the very end of the race.
Wang Chung - Everybody Have Fun Tonight. My race playlists are heavily populated by girly pop songs and 80s music. Don't judge. And don't pretend like you don't like these songs too.

I pulled my headphones out a little bit before the end, probably about a little more than a quarter mile to go. The end.

Gansett Playlist

In races and long runs, I try to go as long as I can without music. This may or may not happen at Gansett for a number of reasons. It is a VERY small marathon. Probably 100-120 runners this year. That's small for any race, no less a marathon. Volunteering last year, I saw that there were some clusters of runners. Most ran alone, though. It is a two-loop course. Run 16 miles, then run 10 miles. Guess what? You pass all of the mile markers for the second loop in the first loop. I am familiar with most of the course, but that is not necessarily an advantage.

I started with my Shamrock Marathon playlist and edited it down. Any song that I did not like during Shamrock was cut. Goodbye, Elevation by U2. The location-specific songs that dealt with the ocean or water are also good for Gansett.

I didn't have time to add much, but I recently purchased (and still have $50+ in iTunes GCs):

Foo Fighters - Word Forward
Outasight - Tonight Is the Night
Calvin Harris - Feel So Close
David Guetta & Nicki Minaj - Turn Me On
Civil Twilight - Fire Escape (thanks, Pandora!)

Shamrock Music

Shamrock set out DJs at various points on the course. These locations and songs I remember:

Mile 3 - Lady Gaga - The Edge of Glory. It was too early in the race to tell whether I was on the edge of glory. In hindsight, it was an auspicious sign.

Mile 5 turnaround - Foster the People - Pumped Up Kicks. Foster the People has some good running music. I sang along until I couldn't hear the DJ any longer.

Mile 13.1 - Bon Jovi - Living on a Prayer. I actually turned to 2 runners next to me and said, "Hey, we really are halfway there" just after that line played.

There were more DJs out on the course, but I either can't remember what they played, don't remember where they were, or didn't recognize what they were playing.

I ran the first 14 miles or so without music. I am used to running about that far without it, and there were enough interesting things on the course to keep me occupied. At mile 14, the music needed to come out. It got suddenly quiet. The course had been too straight for too long. I knew it was going to continue that way for many more miles.

A leprechaun possessed my iPod and picked me the following songs (with approximate mile markers):

Mile 14-15 Atlantic Ave north
Kevin Rudolf - I Made It. I had set my Shamrock playlist to shuffle before I started the race and then turned my iPod off. I knew this song was going to be the first song. It is more appropriate for a last song. Oh well. The beat was right. The message was good too. I hadn't made it yet, but I was pretty sure I was going to make it.
U2 - Magnificent (Redanka's 360 version) - This song is very long. Another song with a good beat. It was a message I needed to hear at that point. Magnificent. I turned onto Shore Drive towards the end of this song. Let the long crowdless stretch begin.

Mile 16-19 Shore Drive
Fraggle Rock - Pukka Pukka Pukka Squeetily Boink. I put this song on my playlist because I wanted something fun. It came on at just the right time.
Chris Brown - Yeah 3x. Any song that repeats "yeah" or "woo" or any other one-syllable noise is good in my book.
Lady Gaga - Highway Unicorn (Road to Love). On a section of road that looked like a highway. This song starts off with the lines "We can be strong ... run run with it" and a thumping beat.
Incubus - Dig. This is one of my unexpectedly favorite running songs. Already tested at the end of a long run.
30 Seconds to Mars - The Battle of One. Yes, a marathon is a giant battle of one.
Ke$ha - Take It Off. Eh. Not making the cut in the future.
Tom Cochrane - Life Is a Highway. Huh. Like Highway Unicorn, that was appropriate.

Mile 20-22 Fort Story and Cape Henry
Daft Punk - One More Time. This song saved me at the end of my first half marathon. I was very close to breaking 2 hours. This song helped me pick it up and run hard the last half mile. It ends up on most of my running playlists.
Passion Pit - Little Secrets. I remember hearing this song but didn't have any particular thoughts about it.
U2 - Elevation. U2 is my favorite band. Elevation is my favorite U2 song. I remember thinking I didn't particularly want to hear this song. Mmm. It's getting cut next time around.
Hanson - If Only. My favorite Hanson song. Don't pretend like you don't like Hanson too.
Blue October - Into the Ocean. I had just been thinking about looking for the ocean and thought about this song. Poof. There it was.

Mile 23-24 Atlantic Ave south
Chris Brown - Turn Up the Music. One of my favorite songs of the moment. Ironically, I had to turn the music down at an aid station.
Shakira - She Wolf. OK, be a she wolf and keep running.
Rihanna - Don't Stop the Music. Don't remember hearing this song. Maybe I was distracted by the fighter jets? Or starting to take more walk breaks?
Ke$ha - We R Who We R. Eh. Another Ke$ha song? The leprechaun could have done better than that. This song is being dropped from future marathon playlists.
Foster the People - Call It What You Want. Love this song. The rhythm in the beginning always makes me think of a step class.
Hanson - Can't Stop. Oh you think you're clever, leprechaun. I was taking a walk break when this song came on. Can't stop. Keep running. I ended up taking another break during this song, but at least it got me started up again.
Foo Fighters - Bridge Burning. Shoulda had this song for going over the bridge earlier in the race. Still good later in the game.

Mile 25
Sean Kingston - Fire Burning. The end of the song coincided pretty closely with reaching the boardwalk. Pulled out the headphones once I could see the finish line a half mile away.

More Music: Shamrock Playlist

I did some slashing and burning to my Shamrock Marathon playlist. I am planning to run as long as I can without my iPod and then turn the music on whenever I need it. At Chicago, that was about halfway through. I ran the last mile or two without music because I wanted to hear the crowds. I want to cut the playlist down to 4 hours of music or less so that I know the songs I want to hear will pop up. It worked exceptionally well with my Nike+ Women's Half Marathon playlist. The last 3 or 4 miles, every song made me want to sing along and run run run. Every song could have been my favorite song. I've cut the Shamrock playlist down to 6 hours. Not quite 4 hours of less. Oops.

I've been doing tweaking and testing for several weeks. Any song that I skip over gets cut, no matter how much I like it. I might add a few more songs, but I think the playlist is pretty much set. Just under 100 songs at the moment.

For each marathon, I pick out songs that are location-specific. For example, my playlist for running in New Orleans had King of New Orleans by Better than Ezra and Hello Hurricane by Switchfoot. Or I'd put London Calling by the Clash on a playlist if I ever run the London Marathon.

For the Shamrock Marathon in Virginia Beach, I looked for songs that had something to do with rock, green, Ireland, St. Patrick's Day, Virginia, beaches, ocean, or water. I didn't come up with much, but I did include:
Fraggle Rock - theme song, Pass It On, Pukka Pukka Pukka Sweetily Boink, Yes We Can, Stuff Samba (only because it has the line "Do the stuff you've always done before" and has already been tested on long runs)
Blue October - Into the Ocean
Dropkick Murphys - I'm Shipping Up to Boston, Tessie, Captain Kelly's Kitchen
R.E.M. - Orange Crush (from the album named Green)

I normally wouldn't go with Fraggle Rock songs. BUT Fraggle Rock is one of my favorite shows of all-time (yes, I am an adult, and yes, I still like and watch Fraggles, and yes, I fully admit to that). The songs are about 1-2 minutes long. Appropriate for Shamrockin' On? I think so.

Some other recent additions (purchased from iTunes):
Bruce Springsteen - Radio Nowhere
Death Cab for Cutie - I Will Possess Your Heart
Incubus - Dig
Linkin Park - Lying from You
Third Eye Blind - Non Dairy Creamer
Id Guiness - Going to Burning Man (found this through a podcast I listen to)
Pitbull (w/ Chris Brown) - International Love
Katy Perry - Part of Me
Ke$ha - Take It Off

Dug up from my music collection:
Weird Al - Yoda
30 Seconds to Mars - The Battle of One

More Music

I got $100 in iTunes gift cards from my credit card rewards points and more gift cards and some CDs for Christmas/my birthday (a few weeks after Christmas). Woot! More new songs for me to add to my running and marathon playlists. I still haven't made a dent on the balance in my iTunes account.

On a random note, Foster the People's Torches is actually a pretty good CD. No other song sounds like Pumped Up Kicks, but there are several songs similar to Helena Beat. Mostly dance-type music. U2's Magnificent is one of my most favorite songs ever, so 2 remixes are going onto my playlists. I have some questionable taste in girly pop and 80s music when I run. But hey, if it works, I'll run with it.

I purchased or got on CDs:

Dropkick Murphys - I'm Shipping Up to Boston (hopefully!)
Rihanna - We Found Love
Rihanna - Roc Me Out
Foster the People - Helena Beat
Foster the People - Pumped Up Kicks
Foster the People - Don't Stop (Color on the Walls)
Foster the People - Houdini
Foster the People - Call It What You Want
Stereo MCs - Connected
Good Charlotte - I Don't Want to Be in Love
Shifty - Starry-Eyed Surprise
Death Cab for Cutie - Meet Me at the Equinox
Sean Kingston - Fire Burning
U2 - Magnificent (Redanka's 360 remix)
U2 - Magnificent (Adam K and Soha Club remix)
Maroon 5 - Misery (this one is going on my running playlist only. NOT a song I want to hear during a marathon)
Blue October - Into the Ocean
Nickelback - When We Stand Together
M83 - Midnight City
Wang Chung - Everybody Have Fun Tonight
Fitz & the Tantrums - Don't Gotta Work It Out
Angelic - It's My Turn 2009 (Darren Tate radio edit)
Shakira - She Wolf

Songs I Already Owned that I Added to my Running/Marathon playlists:

U2 - Do You Feel Loved
Lady Gaga - Highway Unicorn
Barenaked Ladies - Grade 9
Ben Folds Five - Landed (running list only)
Def Leppard - Pour Some Sugar on Me
Hanson - Don't Stop
Faith No More - Epic
Tonic - Casual Affair

Nike+ Women's Half Marathon Recap: The Race

I just completed my first virtual race, the Nike+ Women's Half Marathon.

I prepared as if it were an actual race. No expo? No problem. I made myself a virtual expo. That seemed appropriate for a virtual race. Checked out stuff online and used my Christmas/birthday gift cards. Downloaded new music from iTunes. Hydrated. Ate chicken parm from my favorite restaurant. Got my gear and clothes together the night before. Enjoyed sleeping in my own bed and not traveling. I only had to get up, have breakfast, get dressed, and roll down the street to the gym.

Off I went in the morning to the gym. It was a good morning to hit the gym. Temps in the teens with windchills around zero. Brrr. I would have done a long run outside, but not a race. Especially not a race by myself.

The treadmills are programmed to stop after 1 hour, so I had to trick the treadmill into letting me keep going. I was going to have to come to a dead stop and start the treadmill again. I decided ahead of time that I was going to run 7 miles, stop briefly, restart the treadmill, and run the last 6.1 miles.

I put my stuff in a locker, grabbed my water (1 L of Smartwater, two 8 oz bottles from my Fuelbelt, and .5 L Gatorade) and fuel (shot bloks and 4 mini pretzels) and pouch of extra stuff (chapstick, good luck charm), and hopped on my favorite treadmill, and warmed up. Then stretched. Then set the speed to 7.7 mph/ 7:47 pace and the incline to 1%.

I started my race a little after 7:30am. The gym was pretty quiet. I could have counted the number of gym patrons on one hand. The first minute, I thought the pace felt fast and wondered if I could hold on. And then it didn't feel so fast. Not easy but manageable. I had a TV schedule on a sticky note. I flipped between Saved by the Bell, ESPN, cooking shows on the Food Network, the Weather Channel, the Top 20 countdown on VH1, and CNN.

About 3 or 4 miles in, I realized Nike+ was eating my distance. Not cool, Nike+, not cool. Still, there wasn't anything I could do except run 13.1 Nike+ miles. The gym was getting busier, but there was still open equipment. Some people I knew came in close to mile 5. We waved at each other and that was it.

When I started to feel tired, I kept thinking that I paid $40 to run on my own and I am going to do it. That always brought on a surge of energy.

I stopped the treadmill at 7 miles on Nike+ and 7.55 miles on the treadmill. Note to self: if you ever try to do this again, don't try to drink out of a 1 liter Smartwater bottle. Fill your Fuelbelt bottles and loop the Fuelbelt on the treadmill rail. And off I was to run the last 6.1 miles.

Around mile 9, I got down to my sports bra. I have ran outside in the summer in a sports bra, but I've never done it at the gym before. I don't even think I cared at that point. I had a goal and I was going to work hard to meet it. I also realized that unless something unplanned happened, I knew I had enough energy to make it another 4 miles. Another surge of energy.

After 10 miles or so, I decided I wanted music instead of TV. Every song on my playlist was a song that I absolutely loved. My iPod picked me:
Switchfoot - Dark Horses
U2 - Magnificent (Redanka's 360 Remix)
Gym Class Heroes - Stereo Hearts
Katy Perry - Firework
Chris Brown - Beautiful People
Lady Gaga - Judas
U2 - I Will Follow
Kevin Rudolf - Let It Rock
skipped Jason Derulo - Don't Wanna Go Home and NKOTBSB - Don't Turn the Lights Out
Fitz and the Tantrums - Money Grabber

In my last couple of miles, there was a guy 2 treadmills down who looked like he was struggling. I encouraged to keep going and gave him thumbs up. Once we both stopped running, he thanked me for the encouragement at a time when he was feeling down.

I hit 13.1 miles on Nike+ and I think 6.3 miles on the treadmill (for a total of 13.9 miles according to the treadmill). And that was my virtual half marathon.

Nike+ says I ran 13.12 miles in 1:48:15. That comes down to an 8:15 pace. Except I had the treadmill set to a 7:47 pace the whole time (I dropped it to 7:30 for the last half mile, but that shouldn't have made a huge difference). Usually, that particular treadmill reads less mileage than Nike+, so I am not sure what was going on. Maybe it was because my Nike+ sensor is calibrated to be most accurate around 8:30-8:45? Assuming the treadmill is calibrated correctly, if my pace was 7:47, I would have ran 13.9 miles total and 13.1 miles in 1:42:02. That's an unofficial PR by almost 3 minutes! Which measurement is right, I do not know. I am leaning toward the treadmill being correct based on effort level and previous experience with that particular treadmill. I do know I am so done with Nike+. Oh, I was done with Nike+ months ago, but now I am really done with Nike+. Eating .8 mile of a 13 mile run at race pace is unacceptable.

I am not going to let it take away from successfully racing by myself on a treadmill. It wasn't awful! I never got bored because I had the TV and music to entertain me.

I walked on the treadmill for 5 minutes, changed into a dry set of clothes, ate a banana, grabbed a protein bar, and walked for another 20 minutes or so on the treadmill. I spent some quality time with my foam roller at home. Ahhhhh.

If I ever attempt to race on a treadmill again, I will make sure I have a good plan for entertaining myself and have water bottles that are easy to handle. Good thing I brought two of my Fuelbelt bottles.

First virtual race done!

More Running Playlist Additions

I got an iTunes gift card in a gift swap, and so I purchased some new songs to add to my running (and Shamrock Marathon) playlist. I run without music and actually prefer it now, unless I am on the treadmill or running longer than 15 miles.

Chris Brown - Beautiful People
Chris Brown - Yeah 3x
Fitz & the Tantrums - Money Grabber
Phoenix - 1901
Gym Class Heroes - Stereo Hearts
The Naked and Famous - Young Blood
Kevin Rudolf - I Made It
Kevin Rudolf - Let It Rock
Passion Pit - Little Secrets
Junior Senior - Move Your Feet
Jason Derulo - Don't Wanna Go Home
New Kids on the Block & Backstreet Boys - Don't Turn Out the Lights

I also have CDs by the Dropkick Murphys, Rihanna, and Foster the People on my Amazon Wishlist with the intention of putting some songs from those albums on my running playlist.

Bands that Populate My Workout Playlists

U2
Pearl Jam
Switchfoot
Foo Fighters
Hanson
Arcade Fire
Barenaked Ladies
The Bravery

I have seen all of the above bands in concert at least once. I've seen Pearl Jam and Hanson three times each.

Other Bands that Make the Cut:
Lady Gaga
Rihanna
Michael Jackson

More Music

New editions to my running playlist (that I still don't really use for running):

Switchfoot - Dark Horses
Switchfoot - The War Inside
Gym Class Heroes (featuring Adam Levine) - Stereo Hearts
Foster the People - Helena Beat
Hot Chelle Rae - Tonight Tonight
Cobra Starship - You Make Me Feel
Black Eyed Peas - Don't Stop the Party

Some of these will be tucked on my iPod for the Chicago Marathon. My plan is to run without music as long as I can and then turn it on when I need it.

Sunday Thoughts O' Random

Dear Bank of America,
Thank you for not sending me my credit card statement for this billing cycle. And thanks for sending my statement to my bulk mail folder last billing cycle. I just barely sent in my payment on time, and that was only because I could do an instant payment from my Bank of America checking account. I am not amused.
Best,
me

Dear Switchfoot,
Thank you thank you thank you for sending my pre-ordered CD so that I would have it in time for its release on Sept. 27. I've had the CD in my hands since Friday evening. Score! 4 days before release date! Your songs are coming along with me on the Chicago Marathon.
Best,
me

Dear marathon monster that lives in my stomach,
I know, I know, you want more food. And I also know you are always hungry. You seem to be unaware of this thing called taper. That means less miles and in theory less food. Enjoy your last two weeks in my stomach.
Best,
me

3 weeks and counting

I got my confirmation ticket for the Chicago Marathon in the mail today!! A promising sign? I think so.





I love the little card tucked in my packet reminding me that I am in a seeded corral. Yeah. 'Cause I totally forgot that I had to submit my corral-qualifying time by printing it out and physically mailing it to the Chicago Marathon. And it's not like I keep looking myself up in the list of registered participants to make sure that I am still in Corral C. 'Cause that would just be strange.

No matter. BRING IT CHICAGO!

Also, ESPN is streaming Vice Verses, Switchfoot's new CD, before it is released on Sept. 27. As always, there are many songs that I think will be good for running. The War Inside is definitely going on my marathon playlist.

Yeah, it's where the fight begins
Yeah, underneath the skin
Between these hopes and where we've been
Every fights comes from the fight within

I am the war inside
I am the battle line
I am the rising tide
I am the war I fight
Eyes open open wide
I can feel it like a crack in my spine
I can feel it like the back in my mind
I am the war inside

The big things come from the little dreams
Every world is made by make believe

Sounds like good messages for a marathon.

We are the dark horses

I heard a new Switchfoot song, Dark Horses, on the radio yesterday morning.

There are so many Switchfoot songs where the lyrics resonate with me, usually on more than one level. Meant to Live, We are One Tonight, The Shadow Proves the Sunshine, Daisy, Learning to Breathe, Dare You to Move, Hello Hurricane. Jon Foreman, the lead singer, put out some beautiful solo work too. How could I not like a song named I am Still Running?

Dark Horses is one of those songs. Loved it instantly.

born for the blue skies
we'll survive the rain
born for the sunrise
we'll survive the pain

Now I just have to wait til Vice Verses, the new album, is released on September 27. And cross my fingers that Switchfoot comes to Providence while I am still here.

New Songs I Like

Note: these are songs that are good for exercising and I *think* would be good for running too. I have used most of them while strength training (thanks to VH1, MTV, and Palladia playing music videos at the time I strength train at home ... wait, they actually play music videos??), but I haven't actually ran to them most of them. Music, running, and I only meet up the one time every 2-3 weeks I end up on a treadmill.

Fitz and the Tantrums - Money Grabber
Florence and the Machine - Got the Love
Portugal. The Man - People Say
Matt Kearney - Hey Mama
Jason Derulo - Don't Wanna Go Home
Foster the People - Pumped Up Kicks
Lady Gaga - The Edge of Glory
Andy Grammar - Keep Your Head Up
Matt Nathanson - Faster
The Naked and Famous - Young Blood

Music? What Music?

Earlier today, I saw this article on how jogging outside with music is dangerous. I was already planning this post. That was good timing.

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With the exception of two runs on the treadmill, I've gone over a month running without my iPod.

At first, it was because I couldn't hear the time and distance alerts from Rhody G. I am used to getting verbal feedback from Nike+ every 5 minutes. This is useful, particularly in the summer, because it reminds me to take a sip of water. So I set Rhody G to chirp every 5 minutes and every 1 mile. I am constantly chirping away.

But then I really started to like running with no music. I feel more approachable and more friendly. The two areas where I regularly run (a gravel walking/running path and a long bike path) are like social clubs. I nod hello or say good morning and usually get a nod or good morning back. I talk to people (like the lady last weekend who asked me why I put my arms up when I stopped running. I told her because I was done and I was practicing for races). I enjoy running into the regulars who I see every morning. I enjoy running early on the bike path when all you see are bikers and runners with hydration belts.

At times, it is a safety issue. I can hear cars more easily if I am on the road or crossing streets. The bikers on the bike path I use tend to be very quiet and very fast and don't really announce themselves. I can hear the bikers a bit better too.

I am more in tune with my thoughts. That's one of the reasons why I got back into running. I cannot tell you how many class lectures or dissertation ideas or tough emotional things got worked out on a run. Somehow running raised my emotional threshold and made the emotional things much easier to handle. I got lots of good thinking done out on runs. I miss just letting my mind wander.

Or I can focus more on running and my body. How am I feeling? Does anything hurt? Is this a comfortable pace? Do I need water?

I raced without the iPod and it was nice. Really fun too. I ran 12 miles alone without it. For a variety of reasons, it was one of the best runs I've had in a long time. I decided that I am going to run Rock N Roll Providence without the iPod.

I am surprised it took me this long to break free from my iPod. One of my best runs ever was in Vermont last fall. I thought my iPod was fully charged, but not so. It lasted 6 miles of a 12 mile run. And then it died. I briefly panicked, but then I realized there wasn't anything I could do. So I kept running. I found a babbling brook that I didn't know existed. I paid more attention to the fall leaves. I found a beautiful red barn framed by a pond, fall foliage, and mountains. The barn was so pretty that I went back later with my camera. I would have missed so much of that if I had been listening to my iPod.

So long, Pod Buddy. It's been real. We will meet again on the treadmill. And maaaybe on long runs later in the summer/early fall.

Running Playlist All-Time Favorites

I've been running less with my iPod. In fact, it's been over 2 weeks with no music. It's been pleasant, actually. I am more social and more in tune with my thoughts and my body. Buuuuuut I'm not going to completely give it up. Pod Buddy is still coming along with me on treadmill runs, pace runs (maybe), long runs, and races.

I use a generic Running List most of the time. There is a lot of U2, Switchfoot, Pearl Jam, Foo Fighters, Michael Jackson, Hanson The Bravery, Arcade Fire, New Wave 80s tunes, and girly pop songs. I made slightly different lists for each of my marathons. Sometimes the songs were location-specific. King of New Orleans worked for, well, New Orleans. There are some songs that I otherwise like but just do not want to hear during a marathon. Such as Misery by Maroon 5. Or Hard by Rihanna. Or Walk by Foo Fighters. No. I want positive messages and pump-me-up beats.

In no particular order, these are an eclectic bunch of songs that make it onto every running playlist. Some are new. Some are old. Some are random.

Billy Idol - Rebel Yell
U2 - Elevation, Beautiful Day, Pride, Magnificent, Get on Your Boots
Foo Fighters - Breakout, Monkey Wrench, Lonely as You
Cake - The Distance
Pearl Jam - The Fixer
Rihanna - Don't Stop the Music, Only Girl
Arcade Fire - Ready to Start, Power Out
Switchfoot - Meant to Live, We Are One Tonight, The Sound
Daft Punk - One More Time
Journey - Don't Stop Believin'
The Bravery - Fearless
Cascada - Evacuate the Dancefloor
Katy Perry - Firework
Usher - More
The Clash - Rock the Casbah
The Fray - Syndicate
Grace Potter & the Nocturnals - Paris
Hanson - If Only, Waiting for This
Ke$ha - Tik Tok, We R Who We R
Keane - Crystal Ball
Kings of Leon - Radioactive
Michael Jackson - Thriller, Beat It
Natasha Bedingfield - All I Need
R.E.M. - It's the End of the World as We Know It
Sugarhill Gang - Apache
Third Eye Blind - Can You Take Me