April Fools Run

Accomplished.  That’s my word for the day. 

This morning I ran in the first annual Katz JCC April Fools run on the boardwalk in AC.  The weather was perfect.  Dazzling sunshine, a calm Atlantic Ocean, and an abundance of enthusiastic runners.  Other than palm trees blowing in 90 degree temperatures, white sand, and crystal blue waters, it doesn’t get any better than that.

Participants received cool t-shirts and colorful jester hats that even light up.  My puffy hair didn’t fit well enough under my hat, so as much as I wanted to run wearing my jester hat, I couldn’t.  The picture was taken after the race.

I ran the 11K or 6.83 mile run.  I placed 166 out of 342 and I’m feeling pretty good about myself now. My pace was 9:06 miles and it took me 1 hour and 2 minutes to complete the run.  My only competition was myself. I rarely have the time to train for any running events, but I do try to keep in some kind of shape so that I can finish respectively.

The race was well organized and upon completing the race, runners were treated to a nice cold beer.  Yep!  Beer!  Sounds like an oxymoron right?  Trust me- they go well together.  Bananas, oranges, water ice, pretzels and water were also available to runners, but for some reason, the beer stands out in my mind.

Running is a euphoric experience for me.   The more that I run, the more I want to.   I never get bored indulging in running.  I’m excited because I started running with my son on his bike and look forward to the day when we can run together.  There’s a very small window where I’ll be able to keep up with him; after that, mom will be too slow.  I also hope to teach him a little something about fitness and maintaining a healthy lifestyle.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that “more than one third of U.S. adults—more than 72 million—people and 17% of U.S. children are obese.”  Not to get off topic, but we have to get our kids off of the sofa, away from TV, away from video games and computers and keep them active.  We must also break away from any unhealthy eating habits or other unhealthy family traditions and teach our children a better way of life. 

A good place to start is exercising and playing outdoors with the kids.  The weather is warming up and the spring is the ideal time to get out doors and have some family fun.  

CDC Links

http://www.cdc.gov/obesity/childhood/defining.html  

http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/hestat/obesity_child_07_08/obesity_child_07_08.htm  

http://www.cdc.gov/obesity/index.html