Flu Season and other rants

     It is inevitable that a physical educator for 11-14 year olds is bound to pick up some type of bug that goes around in the school, gym and locker room.  I am confident that I take the correct precautions but eventually it happens, Mr. Wiegner gets sick!  Last friday, I was starting to feel a bit under the weather so i opted for a 0 mile day and "chilled" out friday night (ok, besides going to the green turtle with a friend, I chilled out.)    No such luck!  I woke up feeling pretty bad.  I got into the doctors and the diagnosis was Bronchitis (Kryptonite to a runner).  I knew I would need a few days off, which was fine.  So, I stayed in bed all day saturday and actually began to feel a lot better sunday.  I decided to go over to Tex Paul's sunday night to watch football with some friends (at this point I was on antibiotics for over 24 hours and felt i was on the mend).  Well, at the end of the night, while driving home, I began to feel terrible.  I had Body aches, chills, and my overall feeling was muy terrible!  I woke up the next morning to a 102 degree fever and put the white flag up for the next two days, missing two days of work (never have done that before in one week).  I found out that I not only had a chest infection but on top of it, I got the Flu...
    I took 10 days of running off in total, which was a huge bummer.  I ran yesterday evening with Jordan Snyder from the Kentlands, down Great Seneca Hwy and into Seneca Creek park.  We ran our lake loop which is a touch over 8 miles.  Besides a lot of coughing due to the cold air hitting my bruised lungs, i felt very refreshed.  More importantly, it felt great to get out there and exert some energy.  Afterwards, we met Michelle at Not Your Average Joe's (in the kentlands) for dinner and a drink.  The name appealed to me as I feel that my name is Joe and I am not average.  I asked our waittress if I can show you a photo ID that my legal name is Joe, would you give me a discount.  Her response, "For you, yes." 

Tonight I am running from the Chevy Chase store with Lavar.  Looking for 8 miles. 

In other news:  I had another weekend of exciting home shopping.  I went out with my Realtor Nancy and found some great places.  I was approved for more than I thought I would be approved for and Nancy is forcing me (which i have no complaints of) to take a very conservative approach so this will be easy (I won't have to change my lifestyle much as far as going out when i want and continue with the plan of traveling, which i am planning to do a lot more of!).  I found a brand new Townhome that I have been approved for in Clarksburg Village.  They are building a beautiful town center directly across the street that is to mirror the Kentlands (which really appeals to me).  I need to get more deets but this process has a chance of being shorter than expected, my goal is to be settled and moved in as a first time homeowner by April!  More details to come.

I am excited about the new transformation in Philly to come with Chip Kelly as the new Eagles head coach.  I am amped to see how he uses the offensive weapons that Philly has and what he is going to do in order to fill some big voids on the team (O-Line for sure), Secondary on Defense as well.  What is the quarterback situation.  Michael Vick fits the "Option" style offense that Kelly was responsible for at Oregon.  However, Vick is an injury machine.  Chip Kelly has stated that he is extremely impressed and always has been with Nick Foles.  I think keeping Foles is the best scenario.  He is not very mobile but do you really need to be.  A guy by the name of Tom Brady runs the Option often and effectively.  That guy couldn't get away fast enough from Male Uggs, let alone a blitz. The next few months into the summer should be exciting.  Any season will be better than the last two horrific seasons.  

Giddy up!
 Love,
   Wiggy

12/31-1/6: Necessity

The gift of Running for a "Runner" is a key ingredient to life in many ways and many times varies depending on the person.  For about a year span, I put running on the back burner in my life.  I forced myself to neglect it, trick myself in believing i was over it and that i could use other forms of exercise to get my "fix" instead of that given by a nice daily morning/evening run, hard workout or satisfying race effort.  In the last year, running was not able to fit in as part of my "agenda" for most days.  As the year progressed, I felt something was missing from my life.  Of course i knew it was the fact that since the age of 14, I ran pretty much every day or if I wasn't running, i was injured and I would be biking or swimming with the goal in mind that I needed to be fit for my return back to the track and roads. 

  Believe it or not, as we grow older and think we have everything figured out, we have learned from our mistakes in the past and will not make others down the road- it is a reality check to learn how that is so far from the truth.  In the last month, I have started running consistently (with smart progression) and it has been a God send.  Running is the gateway for stress relief, motivation and achievement.  Those three things not present in my life in the last year really hit home recently and I am thankful for the gift of running.  Furthermore, I am very thankful to be surrounded by awesome teammates and a very dedicated coach, who I am proud to also call some of my best friends in life.  I am excited to see what 2013 brings both on the roads/track as well as in life.  Here's to a safe, fun and unforgettable 2013!

Monday:  9 miles.  I ran an easy 9 miles at Riley's lock on the soft/flat grade. 

Tuesday:  12 miles.  Hello 2013!  I jumped in a 5 x 2000 workout with Beth Young (who is training for the Phoenix Marathon).  She is really fit and the volume of the workout was the most I have run in about a year. 

Wed:  OFF.  Had a long day at work and was feeling a bit rundown from the day prior/New years eve festivities.

Thurs:  9 miles in Germantown.  Felt solid, dipped under 6:50 pace for my avg.

Fri:  6 miles in Black hill park (germantown).  Felt a big sluggish.  I just took it easy (just under 7 min pace).

Sat:  16 miles!  I ran Coach Jerry's infamous Marathon prep workout with the ladies.  When coach asked if I could run the entire workout with Beth, I was a little hesitant with the volume of the day.  Prior to saturday, I have not gotten close to a 16 miler in almost 2 years.  However, once I got going, it felt good.  It was fun hanging out with the girls team as the mens team rarely runs with the womens team (at least in the past).  GRC has some VERY talented ladies on the squad now and I am excited to see how they fare in 2013!  Beth crushed her workout, I got 16 miles in well under 7 pace for the average, and several of the ladies got some solid ice-breaker workouts in doing pieces of the 16 mile workout. 

Sun: 6 Miles.  I ran in Black Hill Park (just behind the place I am living at until I buy my first home!).  I took it very easy and felt better than I thought I would (a day after a 16 mile day).

   58 miles in 6 runs.