I am going to do the Bears 5K this weekend at Soldier Field but am reffing a semi-pro football game at Solorio Academy later. Would taking the Orange Line from Pulaski and getting off at Roosevelt be the easiest way to kill two birds with one stone?

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An unjust law is no law at all--St. Augustine of Hippo

Cause tried and true
I see the light in you
Oh, can you dig in my soul?
Could you smell my whole...
life?--Gener and Deaner

I have been running the same route most days for about eight years and I have a lot of little OCD habits when I run. For example, there are certain sidewalk squares I avoid and certain manhole covers I must step on. At one point I pass an animal shelter and I always count the cats in the window. I consider more cats good luck. After I count the cats I tap the keys in my right pocket as many times as there are cats and do that as many times as there are cats. Three cats would be 1-2-3 STOP 1-2-3 STOP 1-2-3. The object is to finish before I cross the alley. Today there were seven cats. As I was going through my routine I saw a cute young woman looking at me like I was insane. The younger me would have been embarrassed, but now I'm just another crazy old man wandering the streets of Rogers Park.

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General Jim wears Fort Bragg down... to get it!

Went to go see a doc a few weeks ago. Got a knee. I'd have flare ups of aching pain when I'm sitting for extended periods of time. Or when I'd have to climb stairs. I've had this for years but now it's become more constant/intense

Diagnosed with runner's knee or patellofemoral pain syndrome. Was pretty sure I had that before going in but wanted to make sure.

Picked up some stupid slow gel shoes, have a list of exercises/stretches and did yoga for the first time Sunday.

Yoga....not easy!

people complain running is boring. Yoga! now that is boring. holy crap. fuck that noise.

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Reality is your friend, not your enemy. -- Seacrest

Back and knee issues were the original reason why I dialed back my daily run. I keep it to two miles every other day. It reduced all that stress on the joints.

Best of luck with the pain mitigation.

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Hawaii (fuck) You

namaste

kirkwood i hope your pain goes away, sorry you are having to deal with that. i recently had a flareup of my right Achilles tendon that i was able to trace back to some new shoes i had purchased. i was able to switch back to my older pair and everything feels fine again. funny how something like a new pair of shoes can fuck you up. Gonna get a pair of the new Hoka Cliftons, those shoes just work for me.

ran a 5k this past weekend, not an overall PR but i did get a 30-second course PR in 24:10. the course is a hilly beast, so i cant wait to run a flatter, faster course this fall and see how close to 23 i can get.

The Hoka's have been a godsend. I almost feel like I am cheating when I run. Besides the extreme comfort, they make it so easy to run heal to toe. My feet roll nicely with each stride.

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Hawaii (fuck) You

which model are you running in? i have the cliftons and the conquests. now that the clifton 3's are out im probably going to grab a pair of clifton 2's on discount. these shoes are great, but the price is a bit much for me to buy the new models.

I knew you were going to ask. I think it was the Challenger. I just tried on the various versions they had and went with the one that felt best. Amazing running shoes.

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Hawaii (fuck) You

I checked on my shoes. These are the ones I bought:


HOKA ONE ONE Odyssey Road-Running Shoes - Men's

Incredibly lightweight shoes with oversize cushioning, the HOKA ONE ONE Odyssey Road-Running Shoes are designed for simple, smooth riding.

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Hawaii (fuck) You

I was interested in trying the HOKA, but my wife told me I'm not allowed. I have to agree with her, those look AWFUL.

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Yeah, but it's about comfort and performance. If you're too proud, well then live in pain.

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Hawaii (fuck) You

no doubt they look terrible, but i run pain free in total comfort. its worth it. some of the new models are a little more mainstream looking, but the draw of the shoe is a tall stack-height and max support. hard to make that look mainstream.

Do they really help? I need something that is good.

This October/November so far has been spectacular for a stroll outside. By late Oct/Nov I'm inside cursing the treadmill. I'm a huge va-jay-jay about running in the cold. Instead we've been blessed to enjoy the color changing in relative warmth.

I only pray the winter is mild enough to allow soft serve runners like myself to continue pounding the pavement outside.

I've been running at the Y. It's ten laps per mile. Sure, it's tedious at times, but treadmills kill my legs. Indoor track is nice.

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-- source

I generally aim to run between 4-7 miles an outing.

The IU field house has an indoor track of a quarter mile which was manageable for long runs. The "newer" SRSC had an indoor track equal to the Y one you describe. I gave it whirl once. Can't do it.

For myself, psychologically a treadmill is better than a small track. I dunno why. I'm sure there's a research paper somewhere out there.

I'm trying to get back on the horse this week. We shall see how it goes. Probably will need to start with 1.5 - 2 miles to get started.
I'd like to get to 15-20 a week. I don't think I have gone for a jog in 9 months or more.

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Flew too close to the sun on wings of pastrami

My back and knees can't handle the pounding of long running or that many miles in a week. I keep it to 2 mile stretches and up to 8 miles per week. Good luck T Bone.

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Hawaii (fuck) You

Ramping it up from 15-20 mile/week to 30 or so. Probably injured within a week or two

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Reality is your friend, not your enemy. -- Seacrest

I run 1.5 miles every so often in my new neighborhood, which is only as far as I can go up and down the hills of Lemont before puking on a Polish nun.

ya, currently dealing with a foot. gonna just keep running on it. hope the foot goes away or falls off. either way problem solved.

My knees are fucked up. That's why I started riding my bike. I much prefer running, but that's part of the reason my knees are bad. Getting old sucks.

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General Jim wears Fort Bragg down... to get it!

JORR I hear ya. I stopped doing 5k's everyday, and I was able to continue running without pain in the smaller increments as noted above. I don't get enough of a work out with biking. I will rollerblade in the summer, which is also low impact on the knees.

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Hawaii (fuck) You

i recently committed to the Illinois Marathon, i finally plunked down the cash. I have been putting in big miles (for me lately) trying to build up a good base for winter training. I also signed up for a winter trail running series that starts with a 5k the first week of December. i have been running a lot of trails lately. breaks up the monotony of constant road running. this is the best time of year to run in my opinion, cool and crisp.

As KW said, it's been solid. I agree, I like that type of weather because the heat kills me.

Fuck, who am I kidding? I complain about everything now. I am going to be like that Grandpa on the Simpsons in a few more years.

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Hawaii (fuck) You

This weather has been amazing. Did a trail 50k Sunday and actually got a touch of sunburn

I do hope we escape the polar vortex this year. Eyeing the New Orleans marathon in February and would prefer not to have to do the 20-milers in sub-zero weather.

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"I honestly don't see a good bet on the board here."

how/where/when do you guys run? i like running half day forest preserve but it closes at dusk. by the time i'm off work it's gated.

i've been running around lake arlington but i've had to adjust my route. with darkness falling so much sooner i've run into a skunk 3 straight days. no longer can i run that portion of my route. he's probably ready to spray me next time.

Mostly in the streets around where I live (arlington heights). I have courses 4 - 20 miles laid out. Or Deer Grove trails.

I run in the morning before work. Longer on Saturday.

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"I honestly don't see a good bet on the board here."