Chicago marathon training: Week One

And here I go again! I'm back on the plan and we've got 12 weeks to get this thing done. Most marathon training plans are 14-16 weeks, but keep in mind that I keep a pretty strong running base year round. Couple that with my weekly CrossFit sessions and yoga classes, and I'm in pretty good shape to jump on the bandwagon. This week, Becky gave me my training plan, and it is similar to last year's with 4 runs/week, an occasional bike ride instead of a run, 1-2 CrossFit sessions per week, and 1 yoga class per week. Built in are 1-2 rest days as well. We've already had to do some tweaking, since we didn't coordinate as well on some of the days, but nothing is set in stone with marathon training!

So how did week one go down?

Monday: 5 miles at race pace. My legs were still tired from last week's strength session and Sunday's bike ride. Nevertheless, I got it done.

Tuesday was supposed to be a CrossFit MetCon session, but my work had other plans for me...having me start at 8am, which wasn't going to work so well with Becky's schedule. Instead, I did another 5 miler. Again, tired legs, but I managed about the same pace. I was also excited that this top from Athleta was finally on sale. Yep, it's all about the fashion..

Wednesday: Yoga. My instructor attended a workshop the previous weekend, and for this class we did everything against the wall. It was all about the glutes and hamstrings, and I heard the now familiar refrain: "we are all quad dominant". Didn't you just hear that in my previous post about strength training and injury prevention? It was kind of funny to hear it in a yoga class, but there it was. This was a hard class but my legs felt better for it. 

Twisted pigeon. Note my back foot pressing into the wall and my knee is off the ground. I felt this one!

Thursday was my usual double workout of running and CrossFit. I had speedwork on the plan, mile repeats x 5. I haven't done speedwork for a few months now, and I wasn't sure what to expect. I set a goal for myself of sub-8 minute miles. Of course, the last time I did speedwork, it was cold out. This morning was 72 degrees with bright sunshine. Miles 1-3 were fine. Mile 4 started to get in my head, and mile 5 took everything I had not to quit. That last mile was all mental, but I was really proud of myself that I pushed through it and got it done, even though it was slower than I wanted. They can't all be pretty... you know I'm all about keeping it real. This was hard.

After this grueling workout, I went home, showered, ate, and went to see Becky. I won't lie to you, as hard as her workouts are, this is my favorite part of marathon training. Becky's been watching the CrossFit games, and was apparently inspired. The first part of my workout she had me pulling the sled. On my first pass, some guy in a truck stopped to watch me. Dude, nothing to see here, just a runner pulling a sled, now move on... I did 6 of those, alternating with me picking up a 50# sack off the ground, carrying it over to the boxes and putting it on top. It was harder than it looks! I finally figured out how to pick up the sack and get it up to my shoulders so I could hoist it up to the boxes. Marathon training? Really? Hey, whatever works! 

The last time I wore this shirt to CF, she made me carry one of these sacks on my back. Coincidence? I think not.

Friday was a "rest day". Or as Becky calls it, active rest. I did some yoga in the morning from Lululemon. Did you know they have a whole YouTube channel with just yoga videos? They had a great yoga for recovery workout, and I learned a new variation on shoulderstand. This felt amazing.

Supported shoulderstand

After yoga, I put the kayak on my car and headed out to meet one of my oldest friends for a day on the river. As it turns out, I had to buy a state sticker for my kayak. Seriously. Yes, Illinois is the most scamming state in the US. It wasn't an easy process either, and we spent about an hour trying to get that taken care of. Finally, we put our kayaks in the water and paddled downstream. We stopped for lunch at a riverside restaurant, and then headed back out. The wind had picked up, and we felt like we weren't making any forward progress. So we turned around and headed back, letting the wind take us. What a great way to spend the day!

"The sea was angry, my friends," I said. To which E. replied, "Ok, George". Still cracks me up. Maybe you had to be there...

Saturday I had plans to ride in a 25 mile bike ride for Venus de Miles, which is a charity that supports the Greenhouse scholars. I'll have a recap on Tuesday, but I will share that I rode more than 25 miles. At one point in the ride there was a rest stop, and I didn't want to stop. The volunteer flagged me the wrong way, and I ended up riding about 6 extra miles. I was exhausted after this ride. When making my marathon training plan, Becky and I got our signals crossed. On the plan, this was supposed to be a 4 mile run. Oops. I spent the rest of the day with my feet up, to rest them for tomorrow's long run.

Sunday was my long run. After that epic bike ride, I didn't want to go know how this planned 10 miler would go. Wanting to work on pacing, I set a goal pace of 9-930 min/mi, figuring that would be a good cruising speed for my tired legs. I prepared a bottle of Tailwind and headed out into the humid morning. I had foam rolled the night before and my legs felt surprisingly ok. Here's how it went down: 

That 9:28 is because of a giant hill with a steep incline. I actually had to stop to catch my breath at the top. Otherwise, the run went well, and I even had negative splits on the back half. Don't get me wrong, at mile 8, my brain was telling me to stop. I kept reminding myself that this is how I felt at mile 23 last year at Chicago, and used that memory to push myself through the hard final miles of today's run. I mean, if I quit on a 10 miler, how can I expect to hit my goal at a marathon? This was a great lesson for me, and this run set the tone for me as I approach the rest of my marathon training. And yes, I pulled out my mantras. It helped that I had some fun, motivating songs playing in my ears too. Have you ever listened to Diane Young by Vampire Weekend? That put a spring in my step as I sang the refrain out loud: "Baby, baby, baby, right on time..." 

Because yep, my pace was right on time!

What are you training for? How's the training going? Any songs you want to throw my way to perk up my playlist?

I'm linking up with Tara at RunningNReading for her Weekend Update. It's a fun linkup where everyone recaps what they're up to. Check it out!

Dodging the injury bullet

It doesn't have to be this way. 

Last week, one of the link ups I like had a topic "Five Fitness Trends I Won't be Trying". I read all the posts and was stunned-yes stunned--to find that about 90% of the running bloggers mentioned CrossFit as a trend they don't want to try. If you've been following me for any length of time, you know that I work with a coach who is not a running coach, but a CrossFit coach, and that I've had amazing results in both my finish times and my ability to remain injury free this year. While I don't participate in CrossFit classes, Becky does have me do a lot of moves that she uses with her classes. But she also puts me through a strength cycle twice a year. I just wrapped up this one and will begin marathon training fully now.

There's no denying the difference that this training has made in my running. I credit all of that to the change in my training, which is lower mileage and more strength training/interval training. In fact, Becky herself is working on a testimonial about the change CrossFit has made for her. This is her 5 year anniversary doing CrossFit, and you can see from the pictures what a change she has made in her physique, as well as the way she carries herself. Becky is a big believer in CrossFit, but interestingly, when I asked her about CrossFit Endurance, she told me NOT to read the book. So she's not drinking the koolade. It's why I love her. The heavy weight lifting I do with her is not specific to CrossFit.

Becky's transformation

Believe it or not, one of the goals of lifting the heavy weights is to protect me from injury on the road. I'm not saying you have to do CrossFit, but as a runner the benefits of strength training are indisputable. Lifting weights is actually protective for the joints, especially for those of us of a "certain age". Joe Friel, a well known coach and expert on endurance training, advocates weightlifting for the athletes of all ages, but particularly for the older athlete. On his blog, he provides guidance for endurance athletes. With regards to weight training and injury prevention, he recommends lifting heavy loads to increase bone density and testosterone (in men and women) which in turn leads to increased muscle mass. By lifting heavy weights, the body will develop strength in all areas, including areas that are naturally weak, like the joints.

A recent study found that for masters athletes, heavy lifting increased running efficiency. Increasing muscle strength by lifting weight will give you more power and faster muscle contractions.

"When muscles don’t need to work as hard, they also don’t require as much oxygen or circulating blood and therefore will not put as much demand on the heart, which in turn will lower that rate at which it beats. A significant improvement in endurance will be the result. Greater strength does equal greater endurance." -Brendan Brazier, How to Build Strength to Improve Muscle Efficiency

Strength training also improves coordination because lifting heavy weights forces us to be really conscious of our positioning. Being a natural klutz, I was pleased to see that. Practicing the skill of weightlifting over time leads to better form on the road and less repetitive stress injuries as well.

Another comment I hear from runners about weightlifting is that they don't want "to get big". Big bulky muscles would obviously be a detriment on the road. But as runners, we are lifting weights to get stronger, not to bulk up, and our workouts are different than bodybuilders. Have you seen me? I get called skinny (which I don't take as a compliment, by the way). I certainly don't look like a bodybuilder. But Becky has me do a strength cycle twice a year, lifting heavy weights.

Don't think I'll be winning any bodybuilding competitions!

Running is, by nature, a weight bearing activity. Swimmers and cyclists are at more risk for bone density loss than runners. Older athletes lose muscle mass at a much higher rate than younger athletes, and women in particular are at risk for bone density loss. But no matter what sport you participate in, or what age you are, you need muscle mass to support your joints, which is why strength training is so important. And strength training also improves muscle imbalances, which can also lead to injury.

Perpetuating the myth of bad knees...

One thing I hear all the time, when people find out I'm a runner, is "you're going to ruin your knees." The myth that running is bad for the knees is that--simply a myth. A large study, published last year, found that runners have half the incidence of knee osteoarthritis compared to walkers. This is because running has been shown to thicken the cartilage in your knees. Knee pain is more likely to be caused by muscular imbalance than anything structural. Here is where strength training comes in! A recent review has shown that weak hips can lead to knee pain, particularly patellofemoral pain syndrome or so-called "runners' knee". Hips don't lie. Neither do the glutes. Most of us are quad dominant, meaning we rely more on our quadriceps muscles to propel us forward vs the hamstrings and the glutes. In order to prevent injury, we need to balance things out.

Ok, so I've established the benefits of strength training and injury prevention. Oh, and by the way, you don't need to do a lot of strength training. Once or twice a week is sufficient. When Becky and I are doing a heavy lifting cycle, we work together once a week, for 30 minutes. That is all that is needed to make a difference. Believe it or not.

As a runner, what exercises should we be doing to prevent injuries?

Deadlifts and squats.

Wearing my weightlifting socks! With the heavy weights, my Gel Nimbus were too cushioned and unstable. Seriously!

At heavy weights. And low reps. Maybe even only 1!

Because these 2 exercises impact large muscle groups which support your joints. These exercises will strengthen your glutes and hamstrings, and will give you power. Trust me on this one. Hill repeats? Who needs them after this? Squatting and deadlifting heavy will also provide stability to your joints. The articles below also have pictures and descriptions of strength training for runners.

And there is that whole bone density thing...

Who's got time for a fracture? Not this old timer.

Keep in mind that every activity we do has the risk of injury. A few weeks ago, when doing my deadlifts at 95% max, I felt something tug in my right hamstring. Tug is putting it mildly, actually. It hurt. And I dropped the set. I was scared! Luckily, by the next day, I was fine, just sore. But as much as this heavy lifting seems fraught with injury, running by nature is repetitive. The more we run, the more likely we are to aggravate something. By mixing it up, by strengthening the muscles, we can protect those joints and bones. We may not even need to run as much because we've increased our running economy.

And by the way, I've never thrown up from a CrossFit workout.

Be smart, and be strong.

Do you strength train?

I did my homework for this one! Lots of Sources:
http://running.competitor.com/2014/02/training/should-distance-runners-lift-heavy_67606
http://running.competitor.com/2014/03/training/heavy-lifting-for-better-running_67162
http://breakingmuscle.com/running/heavy-lifting-improves-running-economy-in-masters-athletes
http://breakingmuscle.com/running/how-to-build-strength-to-improve-running-efficiency
http://breakingmuscle.com/running/weight-training-basics-for-runners
http://www.runnersworld.com/race-training/strength-training-misconceptions-for-runners
http://www.runnersworld.com/newswire/running-might-protect-against-knee-osteoarthritis
http://www.runnersworld.com/injury-prevention-recovery/5-things-runners-should-know-about-knees
http://www.runnersworld.com/injury-prevention-recovery/inside-doctors-office-dr-jordan-metzl-runners-knee
http://www.runnersworld.com/workouts/body-shop-strong-in-the-knees
http://www.runnersworld.com/sweat-science/hip-weakness-and-knee-pain
http://www.details.com/blogs/daily-details/2014/12/health-myth-running-is-bad-for-your-knees.html
http://www.athletico.com/2014/04/12/3-solutions-quad-dominance-known-injury-risk-factor/
http://www.higher-faster-sports.com/noglutes.html

I'm linking this post with Jill Conyers for Fitness Friday! Check out what everyone else is saying.

The real me

Darlene at My first 5k, one of my favorite bloggers and fellow masters runner, recently tagged me to answer some questions. Never being one to shy away from talking about myself, I share some of the 411 below...

What is something people might be surprised to learn about you?
-I can talk like a frog. Yep, it's one of my special gifts. Did you ever see the original Little Rascals TV show? Not the remake from a few years back. Pale imitation IMHO. There's a character named Froggy, and when I was a kid, I discovered that I could talk just like him. Still can. And I'm fluent in pig latin too. I grew up in a bilingual household. Ooday ouyay eakspay iglatinay?

Have you ever met someone famous?
-Back in my days as a coed at Marquette University, there was a fellow student who liked to drink a lot and get obnoxious. Actually, there were a lot of of them, but only one became famous. Chris Farley. One night at a bar, he and his friends were doing something called "muff diving" (don't ask) and he bit me right on the butt. Hard! I was not happy, and also being one to enjoy a few beers, I'm sure we had words about that. I had quite a bruise. Who knew that he would become famous? I always figured he'd end up in "a van down by the river".

What is something you hope will never come back in style?
-A few years ago, I heard a rumor that high waisted pants were coming back in style. Say it isn't so! I've become a huge fan of low waisted pants because I don't have a waist and high waisted pants are always too tight. I hate stuff around my waist.

What is one thing on your travel/must see/bucket list?
-There are so many places I want to go. The one place I've never been but I'd like to is Hawaii. And running-wise, I'd love to run Big Sur. I put my name in the lottery for next year's race. We'll see...

Who would you want to play in you in a movie of your life?
-I'm kind of a cynical person, and in the past, I always thought Janeane Garofalo would make a great me.

Who is your favorite Disney Princess?
-I have no idea. I'm the mom of boys! I'm not much of a princess anyways...

What would you sing at karaoke at night?
-Pretty much anything. I love to sing. My voice isn't pretty, tho...

#truestory

Who would you want to be stranded on a desert island with?
-Probably my husband. I'd probably go a little nuts being stranded and he's pretty good at keeping me calm. I call him my rock. Plus he's handy and a really good cook. He could have patched up the SS Minnow.

What clothing item/accessory/shoes do you have too much of in your closet?
-I'm a runner. Next question.

What is your biggest pet peeve?
-The misplaced apostrophe. Remember: if it's plural, it doesn't get an apostrophe.

Got any answers to share? 

I'm tagging Marcia's Healthy Slice, Lara from Uptite Mamas, MaryBeth at Tutus and Tennies, Melanie at Runner Girl in a Rocking World, and Kim from Running on the Fly. Anyone else want to answer? Feel free! I love this stuff...

Race thoughts and Race Recaps link up!

Welcome to the 12th Race Recap Link-Up!! I love reading recaps from other bloggers. Its a great way to learn about different races, support other runners, and gain motivation. A recap is the final leg of the race. It’s your chance to relive your race and allow others some insight. The training miles, the race day jitters, the glory of crossing the finish line. the good - the bad - the ugly We want to hear it all….

Meet the hosts...

Jessica at The Silvah Lining: Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Pinterest | Bloglovin'
Wendy at Taking the Long Way Home | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Pinterest
Lara at Uptite Mamas | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram
We'd love it if you'd follow us on all social media & let us know you've shared a post.

Featured post from last week...

Check out Diane's Santa Rosa Half Marathon recap at RunningRocker. Lots of great pictures!!

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And now for some race thoughts....

Since this is a race themed link up but I don't have any recent races to talk about, I thought I'd share my thoughts about this year's upcoming Chicago marathon. If you've been reading my blog for any length of time, you know that I've set a goal for myself for this year's marathon. As I call it, "the mother of all goals", I'm shooting for that sub-4 marathon. Putting it out there has put a lot of pressure on me. When I ran last year's Chicago marathon, I had no goal. Ok, I did have a goal, but after all, I had nothing but that terrible first Chicago marathon to compare with. For both marathons, I set a goal finish time of 4:30. As I progressed through my training last year, I knew that I'd probably surpass that goal time and I did, finishing in 4:17.

I don't think 4:00 is unreasonable at all for me. During last year's race, I had a few glitches, which stole quite a bit of time from me. For example, my phone flashlight turned on at mile 8 and it took me 5 minutes to troubleshoot it. I could have let it go, but I didn't want the battery to run down. I wanted pictures!

Lesson 1: put the phone on airplane mode.

Once I got the flashlight turned off, I headed back onto the course. At about mile 11, my phone started to ring. What the hell? Who would be calling me? I ignored it and kept going. It rang again. And again. So finally, thinking the worst, I answered it. It was my medical assistant, calling to see where I was and wanting to make sure I didn't miss her at mile 13. Seriously. Who calls someone when they're running a marathon? A non-runner, right?

Lesson 2: put the phone on airplane mode.

Lesson learned.

I saw my medical assistant at mile 13, and I couldn't be mad. I ran over for a hug. I also saw some of my neighbors at mile 15 and hugged them too. I don't think I lost a ton of time doing that, and in fact, I felt like I got a power boost from those hugs! There were a few potty stops as well, even in spite of my excellent fueling choice of Tailwind. What can I say? Nothing's perfect. I may not be able to avoid that.

The rest of the race was uneventful and there were no more stops. Running through Pilsen, where I had my meltdown at marathon #1, was empowering to me! The previous race, I was doing the walk of shame through this vibrant neighborhood, cursing my life. This time, instead of calling my husband, crying, to pick me up, I started to pick up speed. The fact that I felt so good at this point in the race gave me wings. I need to remember that when I run #3.

Running up Michigan Avenue for miles 23-25 was also empowering. I walked those 3 miles when I ran the race 3 years before, and it seemed like I'd never reach Roosevelt Road and mile 26. This time? While my hamstrings were starting to protest, I ignored them and kept running. My music really helped me, and I had Rage At the Machine, Eminem, and Noel Gallagher to bring me to the finish line. I trained with this music and having those familiar tunes propelled me to a strong finish with a huge smile on my face.

As painful as that first marathon was, I am so grateful to have had that experience to draw on. Don't get me wrong, knowing how badly I felt that first time weighed heavily on my mind. Becky and I did a ton of mental training along with my physical training. She recently told me that she picks extra tough workouts for me, not so much for the physical training (although that is a factor) but for the mental aspect. This past strength cycle was all about overcoming fear and pain. I'm stronger for it, both physically and mentally. But I still have a way to go.

Having this lofty goal and putting it out there has made me a little bit more anxious than I was as I prepared for my marathon last year. You'll probably be reading a lot about my training and my mindset. This blog has really provided me with a place to express myself and put it all out there. The feedback I get from all the people who read my posts really empowers me. I never ever thought that people would find inspiration in what I write, but I hear that all the time and it really makes me feel good. I hope that by sharing my fears and anxieties, as well as my achievements, will be helpful for my readers and for me. Thanks for going on this journey with me...again!

You know my motto: it takes a village to train a marathoner. And yes, this time, I'll put my phone on airplane mode!

Any race glitches you care to share? Were you able to shake it off? Any strategies to help alleviate race day jitters?

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About this link up...
It is active every Tuesday - Friday. Link up your most recent recaps, or throwback to an old favorite. *If your post is unrelated to the theme, it will be deleted. One recap will be featured on the next link up! Read at least 3 other posts and leave them some love. The more the merrier… share on your social media so others can link-up. #TuesdayTales Grab the code to the link-up image below on your post or somewhere on your blog.

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An InLinkz Link-up

Thank you for linking up this week - be sure to come back next week.

And so it begins...

Marathon training starts...with a bike ride?

Today I started training for the Chicago marathon. Ironically, Becky had a bike ride for me on the plan! But that was actually a good thing, because we've been blessed with some really steamy weather conditions and the idea of a long run in this heat (which I'm not acclimated for) was not at all enticing. Even my short runs have been tough as I slog through the 90% humidity. Why, oh why do we do this to ourselves?

It's got to be the morning after...an ultra..Christmas in July L to R: Kim, Michelle, Penny, me, Maggie, Teri, Karen

After all, I saw these ladies cross the finish line of their 6 hour overnight ultra. I didn't want to do this race--I'm a morning person, after all--and I had the perfect excuse of work in the morning. So I got up early, showered, and brought donuts. Which none of them wanted to eat. The heat really took a toll on all of them, but they all crossed that finish line and were still coherent, even at breakfast!  They were hot, sweaty, and drained. There were lots of blisters and chafing. In spite of their misery, there was that sense of accomplishment and camaraderie. And they all still had a sense of humor. I'm so glad I was there, and it was great to spectate the finish of the race. Sitting with them at breakfast, I realized to myself how lucky I am to have such wonderful, supportive, kind women in my life.

clockwise from left: Penny, Michelle, Maggie, Teri, Karen, me, Barb, and Kim

I think a big part of the success I've had with my running over the past couple of years has to do with the support of the running community. I've got cheerleaders all over the county who encourage me and tell me I inspire them with my miles. And in turn, I'm inspired by those same people. I can be pretty hard on myself, and it's nice to have people in my life who help keep me in check. My coach Becky is another one of those people, and to me, she's more than a coach. She pushes me, but she also encourages me. She's determined to get me to that sub-4 marathon with a similar training plan to the one we used last year. I haven't seen it in total, but she assures me she's tweaked it a little bit.

We're done with that tough strength cycle, and I have to admit I'm a little relieved. This was the toughest strength cycle we've done so far. The weight wasn't anything heavier than I've ever lifted, but there were a lot more reps. Last week I had that hamstring scare, when I felt a tweak in my right hamstring during a deadlift. I was nervous for this week's session, and Becky surprised me with a little bit lighter weights and more reps. She told me she knew I was going to be nervous, and she also told me she didn't want me to injure myself. She also told me that she felt that what we had done was effective, based on my progress. I agree. And near-injury aside, I felt those deadlifts and squats all week, as I struggled with my runs a bit. Oooh, my legs were tired. All good. Just like money in the bank.

So what's on the plan for this week? Flexibility, apparently...
-Sunday: bike ride
-Monday: 5 miles at race pace
-Tuesday: CrossFit intervals 5 mile run
-Wednesday: yoga
-Thursday: Speedwork aka mile repeats x5, CrossFit
-Friday: rest
-Saturday: 4 miles at faster than race pace Venus de Miles bike race

It feels good to be training again. I'm excited to get my head back in the game! Chicago Marathon, I'm coming for you! Will #3 be the charm?

Are you training for anything? What's your plan? Goals?

I'm linking up with Tara at RunningNReading! There's always some great posts over there...check it out!

Social Media Mania

Welcome to the first That Time of the Month linkup! I'm co-hosting this venting session with HoHo Runs! The purpose of this link up is to give bloggers a chance to vent about something that's bothering them! The rules of the linkup are simple: keep it clean (my mom reads my blog), play nice, read at least 2 other posts in the linkup, and link back to the hosts! Thanks for partaking in what should be a fun linkup! Please join us every 3rd Saturday of the month and let it all out!

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What's eating me lately? I'd have to say that I'm feeling overwhelmed by social media these days. While growing this blog is one of my goals, I've had to expand my social media reach in order to get more exposure. With all the different social media channels, there has been a learning curve for me. And some growing pains. Lots of growing pains.

I started blogging about 18 months ago, and started my Facebook page at the same time. Facebook (FB) continues to be one of my biggest sources of blog readers, and I don't have many issues with FB. We've got a really great community of runners on FB, and I've enjoyed interacting with them and meeting and befriending a lot of them. While I've mostly had a great experience on FB. I've had a bit of link dumping--weight loss products I'm talking about you-- and spam, and when I see those, I just delete and block those folks from my page. Who needs them? Who wants them? The one thing that FB has recently started doing, and something I find really annoying, is posting in my personal feed when my friends comment on anything. So that means all my friends get to see everything I comment on. Which is a lot, because I like to support my fellow page admins. I find FBs sharing of everyone's likes a bit intrusive. I'd rather just read what I want to read. I don't care what other people comment on. The other thing about FB that has been challenging me is trying to maintain some distance between my personal life as a nurse practitioner and my blogging/FB personna. I would love to deactivate my personal page, but FB doesn't allow you to have a page without a personal page. Those of you who follow me on both pages may have noticed that I've changed my name on my personal page, and that's to keep the creepers away--I've had a lot of friend requests from people I don't know--and to keep patients and parents from contacting me. I've been getting more and more messages from patients, and not only is it an invasion of my privacy, it is also a HIPAA violation for me to provide any information to them via FB. It's also unprofessional. I never thought I'd have this issue, but in this day and age of oversharing, it's very real.

So many food pictures!

Instagram (IG) started out to be pretty fun, but as my reach on that platform has increased, I've noticed some troubling trends. When I initially signed up for IG, I signed up for a private account, again trying to maintain some sense of privacy. I thought this would enable me to approve my followers. But I soon learned that wasn't going to work so well for me if I wanted to grow my blog, so I opened my account back up. 90% of the people who follow me are legit. But there have been some weird followers... people who have no followers of their own...people who post sexy pictures...a guy whose description says he helps people fire his boss...someone promises me they will grow my IG but has no posts of their own..oh, and those people selling seaweed wraps--you get the picture. I've blocked some of the really questionable accounts. I have to be pretty diligent. I do check all my likes and follows. I don't want to invite trouble. And then there's that whole other animal, the follow/unfollow folks, who do it just to build up their numbers, not because they are interested in anything I post. Did you know that you can pay for IG followers? That there's a "bot" you can install that will follow and unfollow for you automatically? Seriously! But as more advertisers want bloggers with lots of engagement, yes, this is what people are doing to get campaigns.

And you wonder why I waited to long to join Twitter...

And then there's Twitter. I resisted joining for so long, and I just recently took the plunge. So far, so good. Yes, I'm getting more hits on the blog, which has been great. My most recent book club author retweeted my review, along with the reviews of everyone who linked up with me. That's really cool! I also loved being able to retweet all the book reviews of everyone who linked up. I like the idea of being able to tweet about a blog post I read and sharing it with like minded followers. But on the other hand, I'm still trying to figure the whole thing out. I was being followed by someone named Sex Toy Diva who was retweeting my tweets. Some might think any engagement is better than none, but you know that saying that you're judged by the people you hang out with? Sex Toy Diva? Oh, hell no! I figured out how to block her. I don't get why she'd want to follow me. I'm all running all the time--and that's all I tweet about. I've been added to "lists" and I don't understand what it means to be added to a list. Some dental company added me to their list. Why? I have heard that runners have bad teeth, but I don't think that has anything to do with this add. So I figured out how to get off the list. I have also gotten a large number of followers of companies promoting their products and services. Do I follow them back? Most of them, I have not, because I'm simply not interested in what they are promoting. Stay tuned...

I've been on Pinterest for a long time, and in the past, I always used the site to store all the running memes that I came across. I'm kind of a hoarder like that. But more and more bloggers say that Pinterest is a great way to spread the word about their blogs. I have to admit that I don't really look at Pinterest very often. There's just too much information--it's like a bulletin board where you just tack up everything you don't want to lose track of. I'm sure if I sat down and got more organized, I would get more out of it. But who has time for that? Out of all the social media channels I've dabbled in, I would say that Pinterest is the biggest time suck of them all. I will say that I have made some pretty amazing desserts from some of the recipes I've found on there.

There's are other social media sites that I'm not as involved with...Google+, You Tube, Tumblr, Snapchat, and the newest one that's got everyone all abuzz...Periscope. Too many social media channels and too little time. I'm just trying to put out quality content on my blog, and that takes a good deal of time. I love the reciprocity of the blogging community, and how most bloggers will come back to your blog to leave a comment if you've left one on theirs. Speaking of that, I read every comment posted on my blog and I respond to all them. But lately, I've noticed a trend of some readers not seeming to read my blog before commenting. Hey guys, I can tell. Just last week I posted about being inspired by my son and his rugby teammates, and by my friend Michelle who ran an Olympic distance triathlon. No one mistook me for my son, but several people congratulated me on my triathlon and complimented me on my trikit. That's just sad. Although Michelle and I kind of laughed about it!

I didn't expect this to get so long winded, but hey, it's venting session, right? For better or for worse, there's a lot of options available if you want to connect with like minded people. I'm not sure I like all of it. I have met some amazing people through Facebook and blogging, and for that I'm grateful. It will be interesting to see how this all plays out in the future!

What are your thoughts on social media? What platforms do you participate in? What is your favorite place to post? Do you get a lot of spam? Do you block people?

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