Running backward?

No, that header is not meant to be a pithy metaphor.  It is to be taken literally, as in, the guy in this video clip advocates running backward as part of a fitness program.  I'll let him explain:

I think I might try this tomorrow to see how I like it.  I think I'll do it on the track at Scott Field, though, so I don't trip over a dog or bush or buckling sidewalk ;)

Another weekend, another race

As I warned last week, I was going to be competing in the Cheetah Chase 5K last Saturday, which I did, unexpectedly setting a new HillcrestBlogger 5K record time!  OK, OK, true...it was only the second 5K I've ever done, but the course was far hillier and (in my opinion) more challenging.  On the flip side, it was probably 15 degrees cooler than the Riverfest 5K and the sky was completely overcast, both factors of which helped immensely.  Anyway, my time: 37:49:19, shaving 25 seconds off my previous best.  Relatedly, I also paced six seconds better per mile :)  So, hooray for me!  My next race won't be until the Firecracker 5K on Independence Day, so you'll be spared from any running posts for a while, dear and loyal reader.

Tonight, I'm going to open a new frontier on my quest to make this 39-year old lumpy bag of bones a little bit healthier.  I read about the slow-cadence, muscle-failure-desired weight training program first in AJ Jacob's newest book (very funny, BTW) and subsequently bought the book outlining the workout on Amazon for one cent (plus $4.95, shipping of course).  Given the time constraints of being a twice-over parent nowadays, the one- or two-times per week workout of less than thirty minutes sure sounds too good to be true.  And maybe it is snake oil, but I thought it wouldn't hurt to give it a whirl. After all, if it passes the Lesley Stahl smell-test, its gotta be legit, right? ;)

I'll post tomorrow how the first workout tonight goes.