Summary: I really haven’t been great about recording my running streak but I’ve still been doing it. Today, was an easy run that I did with my wife. She runs at a slightly different pace than me so I change my running style to accommodate. I like running with her. It keeps my pace in check and I get to help her stay in healthy shape. It’s a win-win.

The Shamrock Shuffle is on Sunday. That should be fun if the weather is nice. If not, it will be a different kind of joggling fun.

Weather: 49 F. Sunny

Distance: 2 miles

Time: 9:43 am

Run time: 18:22

Listening to: Skeptoid podcast

Weight: ? lbs

Drops: 0

Condition: Felt good but sore from volleyball

Shoes: Asics – 612 miles! Holy cow!!

Advertisement: Gballz.com - custom joggling equipment

Summary: Last week my friend sent me an email inviting me to run with him and another guy on an impromptu marathon around the city. He called it the Chicago Stadium marathon because the path was set up to run past the 4 primary Chicago stadiums including, Wrigley Field, Soldier Field, the United Center, and Sox Park.

While I hadn’t run anywhere close to that distance since the 32 miler in January (and there was a lot of walking in that one), it sounded like an interesting idea.

“We’re just going to do 8:30 min miles or so,” he said.

That was a little slower than I normally run so I figured it wouldn’t be too tough. Once you get the confidence to run long distances, it doesn’t take much to convince yourself that you can still do it.

We started running south from Foster down Damen Avenue. This took us through Lakeview, Roscoe Village, Bucktown, Wicker Park, Ukrainian Village, all the way down to the United Center where the Bulls play. I felt pretty good despite the drizzling rain.

We turned east down Madison and started running towards the city. We went all the way down to Halsted and headed south again. This took us through Greek Town and Pilsen. This part was some of the same roads that you run on the Chicago marathon. Remembering times I’ve done that race made me smile.

When we got to 35th street we turned east again and ran to Sox Park. The stadium has been renamed Cellular Field but it will always be Comiskey to me.

The wind started kicking up and the rain felt a little colder. At this point in the run, we had been going for about 2 hours. I only had one drop joggling but I could feel myself tiring. I’m a little more out of shape than I thought.

We next ran past Stephen Douglas’ tomb which I didn’t even know was in Chicago. We went over Lake Shore Drive via a walking bridge and made it to the running path. This was the same running path in which I did the 50 miler and set the world joggling record for that distance. It would’ve made me smile more if the wind was blowing so strong and I didn’t feel so wet & cold.

I started to noticeably get slower than my running companions. This made me feel a little embarrassed as I think a person who’s done 50 miles shouldn’t tire from an “easy” 18+ miles. But I kept going as best as I could and the other runners (Andy, Richard, Mike) didn’t get too far ahead of me.

We ran north on the path and went past McCormick Place, then Soldiers Field. It was pretty cool. We followed the path past the Shed Aquarium, the Field Museum and the Adler Planetarium. There is so much cool stuff in Chicago.

After hitting those sites, we went into Grant Park and passed the Buckingham Fountain where there were a bunch of bands setting up, waiting their turn to march in the parade that was being held on the road next to the park. As I joggled by, some kids in the band started yelling for me to drop a ball. I threw one high in the air, turned and waved, then turned back to catch the Gballz. The band started cheering loudly.

We left the park and ran over the Chicago River which had just been dyed bright green. It was quite cool.

The path then took us down Michigan Avenue where we had to avoid crowds of people who were out shopping and making their way to watch the parade. It’s amazing the number of people who still come out on cold and rainy days.

We left the bustle of downtown and got back on the lakefront running path. I ran with my two remaining companions until North Avenue. I turned off and they kept going to finish the 26.2 mile route. I had to get home and was feeling pretty tired so I cut the run short.

It was a great time and I’m happy I did it. But I tell you what, I was tired! My run the next day was tough.

Weather: 42 F. Rainy

Distance: 22 miles

Time: 8:23 am

Run time: 3:05:35

Listening to: Moth podcast

Weight: 190 lbs

Drops: 1

Condition: Felt good

Shoes: Asics – 596 miles!

1. Someone juggle while running a 100 mile race.
2. Someone juggle an ENTIRE triathlon (swim, run, bike).
3. Someone juggle while running across the ENTIRE United States.
4. Someone joggle the Great Wall of China Marathon.
5. Someone joggle backwards for an entire marathon.

The winner of this poll was the idea that someone will juggle an entire triathlon.

I actually think the 100 mile race is the most plausible. The triathlon is a great idea but it’s going to be really tough to pull off.

Here are a few other joggling feats I think might be accomplished.

6. Joggling the Antarctic marathon.
7. Joggling a marathon on all 7 continents
8. Joggling a sub 2:30 marathon
9. Joggling the Badwater ultramarathon
10. Joggling banzuke!

What other joggling feats do you think might be accomplished in the next 20 years?

Enlyten Electrolyte Strips

The basic idea of the Enlyten Electrolyte strip is that you eat a dissolvable strip so you can replenish all the nutrients and electrolytes you need in the fastest time possible. According to the company, these dissolvable thin strips get the ingredients to your bloodstream faster than sports drinks, gels, gu, etc.

Types of Enlyten

I was given two types of Enlyten strips, the Energy Strips and the Electrolytes plus strips. I tasted both of them and they are not bad. They have that aftertaste that I get from all products containing artificial sugars like Sucralose and Acesulfame Pottasium, but they don’t taste too bad.

I’m just not sure what they do however. I was expecting a replacement for gues or sports drinks, but these strips don’t do that at all. They are simply vitamin supplements that contain no carbs, no protein, no nothing. I don’t get it. Why would anyone use these things?

After running or joggling, you’re still going to be thirsty so you still need to at least drink water. Drinking Gatorade seems a much better option than taking these strips. And when your hand is wet with sweat, good luck trying to pull these things out of their case!

I do appreciate innovation and this product is definitely different than other things I’ve seen. However, it seems little more than a tasty breath strip like the ones that Listerine sells. They’ve added some slick marketing but I couldn’t tell any improvement in my performance.

Enlyten Company

After doing a little investigation, it turns out that Enlyten is one of these Multilevel Marketing companies. You know, the ones where your friend has a party and then tries to get you to sign up to become a sales person? I’ve never been a big fan of MLMs as they are all essentially a legal pyramid scheme.

Final Verdict

While I did appreciate getting the free samples, it’s difficult for me to recommend them to anyone. The claim that these products deliver nutrients to your bloodstream faster than other product forms is just not substantiated by any scientific studies; at least none that I could find. The products are also nutritional supplements which are not regulated by the FDA, so you can’t even be certain that you’re getting what is labeled on the packaging.

Nutrition supplements scare me.

Finally, Enlyten is a multi-level marketing company and I just wouldn’t give my money to any MLM company, period. The only way I would consider these products is if they were being sold in regular stores. But you might feel differently. Check out their Enlyten website if you do.

Chafing

The biggest problem you’ll have while running in costume is chaffing. Those wigs, ill-fitting clothes, and other accessories can wreck havoc on your skin. Be sure to liberally apply Body Glide or Vaseline before suiting up.

Weather

Don’t forget to adjust your costume for the weather conditions. Face painting might make the costume look more authentic but if it’s raining, the makeup could run into your eyes. The rain might not require you to skip face painting all together, but you might want to avoid painting above your eyes. Wind is another consideration. If it is a windy day, you might want to rethink the big bulky costume and go with something less wacky, like a crazy t-shirt & painted face.

Performance

If you wear a costume, you will not run as fast. Just accept the fact and move on. All times you get in costume should be looked at as PR’s while in costume. Refrain from comparing them to your non-costume performances.

People’s reactions

The crowds will usually love you and you’ll get lots of great comments. Even some of the runners around you might “show the love”. But not everyone likes to be beat by a guy in a bozo outfit (or someone juggling for that matter). And some runners are complete snobs who see costumed racers as a plague on the sport. Be prepared to hear a few insults. I simply smile and focus on all the good reactions that I get.

If you are going to stand out, be prepared to have someone try to shoot you down.

Running clothes at the base

To best prevent post-race pain, be sure to wear running clothes underneath your costume. This will help reduce the chances of chafing and can also help you maintain some mobility. Tights like Under Armour are excellent to wear under a costume. Of course, this works better when the weather is cooler. For hotter days, stick with running shirts and shorts.

Try it out first

One of the best things you can do is to go for a short run before race day wearing your full costume. This will help you identify the adjustments you’ll have to make and it will also give you a good sense of what it will be like. I once wore a Greatest American Hero outfit during the New York Marathon and got way too hot. At mile 17, I took off and threw away my running pants. (I was wearing shorts underneath). If I would have tried it on before I would’ve known to get a different pair of pants.

Costumed runners make races more fun and entertaining for the people watching the race. If you follow some simple precautions you can make it an entertaining, fun and memorable way to do a run.

Be sure to check out the 25 best costumes in the 2009 NYC Marathon.

Have you ever run a race in costume?  Leave a comment below and let us know what you wore?

Summary: I had insomnia last night so I woke up feeling a bit tired. However, I’ve got the Shamrock Shuffle coming up soon and I want to be sure I’m in shape. A nice long run once a week is a key activity that you need to do to keep sharp. I’m skeptical of my speed because I haven’t been doing any speed work. There are three types of runs that you should do each week.
a. Long run – to build endurance
b. Speed runs – to increase your speed
c. Standard run – just to build your core fitness level

Weather: 42 F. Cloudy

Distance: 7 miles

Time: 8:31 am

Run time: 57:45

Listening to: Reality Check podcast

Weight: 198 lbs

Drops: 2

Condition: Felt weak

Shoes: Asics – 535 miles!

Joggling streak day 475 on 12seconds.tv

Advertisement: Gballz.com - custom joggling equipment

They are the Elite J-Series which is a 6 panel bean bag with a diameter of 2.5 inches. Each one is filled with 100g of plastic filling and if you bought them from Gballz, they run $12 each.

Gballz for joggling

I like these new Gballz better than the previous set of suede ones that I had. The suede ones were great from juggling but for outdoor joggling, not as much.  But the Elite J-series Gballz are excellent for outdoor use. They are easy to clean, water resistant, and they are perfectly sized for joggling. I can’t wait to break them in.

If you’re looking for a set of great joggling balls, these Gballz are a good choice.

Running advice videos

Here are links to all my videos.

7 pains caused by running
10 foods to eat to make yourself faster
How to stay focused while running
Running will keep you thin

And the rest of my videos can be found here.

We first learned of Owain Jones while perusing joggling posters on Twitter. Here is his response to our interview questions for jogglers around the world. Owain Jones is a 36 year old, father of 5 who lives in Wales, works as a psychiatric nurse and joggles!

What is the story of how you learned to juggle?

Used to be in a circus when I was younger, teaching kids to juggle, unicycle etc, also done a bit of fire breathing, and fire eating, but have given that up now, the devil sticks were my forte, also used to juggle 5 but have not practiced for ages.

When did you start joggling?

Started joggling when for a laugh after reading about it on the internet, but didn’t real think too much about it until reading about all the world records out there. I have yet to do a race whilst joggling, but am hoping to get one done within the next month or so………will keep you informed.

What kind of training do you do? How fast do you run?

I have run several marathons a yr so am always out training, managed a sub 2:52 marathon, 35 min 10k and 17 min 5k, have no special diet just eat what i want. Am hoping to get a bit better over the coming months then have a go at some of the joggling world records towards the end of the yr. I am hoping to do the London marathon next yr whilst joggling. I normally get a good spot for age entry so watch this space

Any pointers for other would-be jogglers?

You do get some very strange looks.

You can read more about Owain’s quest to set a joggling world record at his joggling blog. The Welsh Joggler.