Late last week, a reader commented on my first blog post (which wasn't too long ago) to tell me that the concept of my blog was a great idea. While this was nice and reassuring, it was also the catalyst for this latest post.
The blogger, Marie, mentioned how important music was to her and her teammates when she ran cross country in high school--and I'd have to agree. Cross country as a sport depends on workouts of various distances and paces, but the competitive aspect of the sport revolves around the 5K. After reading Marie's comment I wondered if I still had it in me: a race-paced 5K.
So Tuesday afternoon, on one of the nicest days we've had in Maryland this year, I threw together a playlist of some newer songs and some old jams. A friend and I had figured out how to run a 5K at Lake Artemesia my sophomore year so I jogged there after class and did EVERYTHING like I would have done it in high school.
I ate a banana an hour before, stretched, and even threw in some warmup strides. I started to realize how much I missed competitive running--or maybe just how much I miss being in the shape I was in when I was a competitive runner.
The nostalgia turned into adrenalin and I did it. For the first time in a year I ran 5 Kilometers as hard as I could, without stopping. I was admittedly dead at the end, as I wasn't expecting 22-year-old beer drinking self to produce a sub 18-minute race, but I was surprised when I came in at 19:40.
These three songs were most helpful in me finishing:
1) "Numb/Encore" by Jay Z and Linkin Park: Possibly one of the best pump-up songs ever (in my opinion). Sang it in my head while waiting for the whistle at the start of every cross-county race and soccer game. Might not like both genres as it is a mashup, but I can't see how this wouldn't work to motivate someone.
2) "Ass Back Home" by Gym Class Heros: Ignore the title's vulgarity. If a song has ever been catchy, it's this one.
3) "Starships" by Nicki Minaj: Don't usually like her, but this one has an amazing drop. Can't beat the beat!
Showing posts with label playlist. Show all posts
Showing posts with label playlist. Show all posts
Wednesday, March 14, 2012
Monday, February 20, 2012
Hitting the Pavement
If you've stumbled upon this blog and at least read the title I can tell you your assumptions are most likely correct. I'm a runner and yes, to some extent, at least I hope, the process of writing this blog will derive a perfect running mixtape. The idea? Well that spurred from my interminable discontent with the amount of discourse online about what music works--and what doesn't--for runners.
This is how it's going to work. I'm going to write about music, running and most commonly a combination of the two. And since the internet has failed at providing quality running tunes up until this point, I'm taking matters into my own hands. I'm going to go on long runs and short runs. Runs on cold winter days. Even extremely fast-paced runs (although they aren't my favorite). The goal is to find music that fits into a motivational role for all different types of running. Along the way I'm sure to pick some songs that utterly suck, and when I do I'm going to explain why.
I think it's also important to note that much like my entire music library the selections will be eclectic. I've found that some of the best running songs aren't always ones that you'd consider, so hopefully some unheralded gems will be discovered over the course of this experiment. Just to give you an idea of what I've listened to in the past:
- When I ran cross-country and track in high school I was a big All-American Rejects fan. I listened to their song "Move Along" on repeat when I ran the annual Haena to Hanalei 8-mile run in my home state of Hawaii.
- Last month, when it was bitterly cold, I decided it was smart to go for a 5 p.m. run 4 miles in a direction opposite my house. When I decided it was time to turn around because the sun was setting, I used the song "Lisztomania" by Phoenix to fight the dropping temperatures.
So, welcome. I hope you're both surprised to have fallen upon this experiment of a blog and excited to see what comes of it. I strongly encourage you to send me input if you find the inspiration to do a little mixtape creating of your own. After all, that is the beauty of the internet.
Happy running!
This is how it's going to work. I'm going to write about music, running and most commonly a combination of the two. And since the internet has failed at providing quality running tunes up until this point, I'm taking matters into my own hands. I'm going to go on long runs and short runs. Runs on cold winter days. Even extremely fast-paced runs (although they aren't my favorite). The goal is to find music that fits into a motivational role for all different types of running. Along the way I'm sure to pick some songs that utterly suck, and when I do I'm going to explain why.
I think it's also important to note that much like my entire music library the selections will be eclectic. I've found that some of the best running songs aren't always ones that you'd consider, so hopefully some unheralded gems will be discovered over the course of this experiment. Just to give you an idea of what I've listened to in the past:
- When I ran cross-country and track in high school I was a big All-American Rejects fan. I listened to their song "Move Along" on repeat when I ran the annual Haena to Hanalei 8-mile run in my home state of Hawaii.
- Last month, when it was bitterly cold, I decided it was smart to go for a 5 p.m. run 4 miles in a direction opposite my house. When I decided it was time to turn around because the sun was setting, I used the song "Lisztomania" by Phoenix to fight the dropping temperatures.
So, welcome. I hope you're both surprised to have fallen upon this experiment of a blog and excited to see what comes of it. I strongly encourage you to send me input if you find the inspiration to do a little mixtape creating of your own. After all, that is the beauty of the internet.
Happy running!
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