Tokyo Five Foot Runner :: Race Day

I did it! The girl who very rarely follows through saw this whole running a half-marathon thing to the very end. To be completely honest, race day really snuck up on me. The weather was perfect, even a little warm for a January morning.  For anyone interested in running a race in Japan, I highly recommend the Tanigawa Mari Half Marathon. It is very well organized and has a great atmosphere. There were over 7,000 runners for the half-marathon alone plus a unicycle half marathon. Apparently, unicycling was very popular in Japan in the '80s. Boys, girls, men and women - it doesn't matter. It looked AWFUL!

No race day drama for me this time around. Blammo was an incredible stage dad from start to finish, making sure I was well hydrated, properly warmed up and stylishly dressed. I also got a wonderful surprise with a mile left and no gas left in my tank -- my 1 Japanese friend remembered that I was running that day and tracked me down to cheer me on. It was such a shock that I ran right past her attempts to flag me down. It was exactly what I needed with just a mile left to go. I even started to get a little misty eyed. That is until I came to the homestretch and realized that I'd be ending these 8 tough weeks of running to Whitney Houston's "Saving All My Love For You" blasting over the loud speakers. I was pretty confused by the music choice but it was a good distraction from my heavy legs and swelling feet.

On the matter of race day music, here's some good advice. If it's a good karaoke song, it's a good running song too. I'm pretty ADD when it comes to running music. If the first 3 seconds of the song don't catch me, I'm hitting the shuffle button. But I got really lucky on race day because it was hit after hit after hit. If I recall, around mile 6, I was treated to this little gem:

Erasure's "A Little Respect"
Journey's "Don't Stop Believing"
Weezer "Buddy Holly"
Red Hot Chili Pepper's "Can't Stop"
Rihanna "Rude Boy"
Beach Boys "California Girls"

At around mile 3, I stumbled upon "Look Down" from the Les Miserables soundtrack, but it was too early for that kind of revolutionary passion. It's a great workout song though. "Look down, and see, the beggars at your feet!"


I'm signed up for another half-marathon in Yokohama in April and plan to shave 10 minutes off my time. I'd love to be able to complete a half-marathon in under 2 hours, but that's a tall order for a short legged gal like me. But I'm up for a challenge and this might be the perfect goal for that daruma I picked up during o-shogatsu.  

Tokyo Five Foot Runner :: Week 5 and 6

I've been pretty busy with work, cooking classes and cookie making, so I had to take a little break from blogging. But despite the busy schedule, I've kept to my running plan to the T, minus one day where I cut 2 miles off my night to get home and bake. What can I say, I love cookies.

I ran my first organized race in Japan last weekend. The Christmas RUN at the Imperial Palace, my normal stomping ground. It was an incredibly trying day but yielded uplifting results. I signed up for the race a few months ago on runnet.com. It was a pretty simple process - make an account, find an open race for your age and gender, sign up and pay at the convenience store. If you have questions on how to do it, you can email me. With the help of Google Translate or Rikaichan, you'll be able to figure it out.

Then came race day. I didn't realize that this race was SO organized - running chips, race numbers and a write up in the newspaper. The description on runnet was "Let's have fun running together for Christmas! There will be prizes!" To which I responded with, "Yeah sure, ok - that sounds easy." I've seen races on the weekends before and they're always pretty casual affairs. Well, I showed up about 40 minutes before ready to get my run on but was greeted with a crowd of folks with runner's chips on their shoes and numbers pinned across their chests. Apparently, I was supposed to go to the sponsor's shop, High Tech Town, in the morning to pick up all my stuff. I tried to tell two volunteers that it was my first time running a race in Japan so I didn't know what to do, but I think they interpreted my sorry Japanese as "Today is my first day running. What do I do?" To this, they responded that it would be very difficult and that I couldn't join the race.

Already in a fragile state, I threw up my hands and gave up. Defeated, embarrassed and frustrated, I walked away with Blammo ready to go home. I may or may not have had tears in my eyes. Those tears may or may not have been streaming down my cheeks. Not embarrassing at all! Just as all hope was lost, one of the race organizers ran over with my number and chip and got me ready. (All the while, apologizing profusely even though it wasn't her fault at all) I guess since I was the only idiot that didn't pick up my stuff, they knew that it belonged to me. I spent the remaining 5 minutes until race time drying my eyes, though, in retrospect, I should have been stretching.

And then it was time to run. And I did. At first, very slowly and hesitantly. I eventually got into the groove and finished 6.2 miles faster than I've ever run before - shaving 7 minutes off my last time. I guess had I picked up my participant gear before the race, like I was supposed to, I would have learned that this Christmas RUN was a tuneup race for the half marathon I'm running in January. In any case, I'm glad I got my first race under my belt before the big day - I'm not sure I would have been able to survive all that drama AND 13.1 miles in one day.  

Tokyo Five Foot Runner :: Week 4

Milestones galore this week! I logged in 20 miles total, the most ever in a week with the help of a 7 mile long run yesterday, the longest I'd ever run in one day. Nike+ informed me just now (via a creepy video of Olympic marathoner Paula Radcliffe) that yesterday was also my fastest 10K. A nice accomplishment considering I'm not setting any time goals. So how do I feel today? Pretty good actually. I'm really surprised I'm not sorer but that's a good sign. Though mentally, I felt great after completing 7 miles yesterday, physically I was a mess. The moment I stopped running I was hit with the most intense hunger pangs I've ever experienced and my ankles, hips and calves screamed "YOUCH!" all night long. I got home and quickly ordered half a rotisserie chicken, a salad and shoestring fries for delivery. I really should have ordered the whole bird.

 This meal reminded me of when I lived with my sister in Russian Hill. This chicken was good because I had just burned 700 calories and rotisserie chicken is hard to find in Tokyo. But my sis and I used to get Peruvian chicken and fries for dinner at Il Pollaio. I got very fat that year, but I was also very happy. Have I mentioned that I miss my sista?

So what else fueled my record breaking week?

More latkes with a side of Hokkaido sausages. In Japan, if something comes from Hokkaido, the island north of the main island, it is special. Notably, dairy products and beer. (Sapporo beer is named after the capital of Hokkaido) 

 The week started off with some delicious Vietnamese Curry and bread, which I can't get enough of these days. 

My 3 weekly obsessions this week: this donburi (rice bowl) from a local bento shop for lunch. It's mushroom flavored rice with ramen toppings. Look how ooey gooey that egg is! My favorite. 

Obsession #2 and #3 sort of go together. #2 is Gravo ice cream bars from my local conbini (Japanese word for convenience store). These taste exactly like Snickers ice cream bars except it's on a stick and has oreo cookie chunks in it. Can't go wrong there. Obsession #3 - eating food in bed right before I go to sleep. I devoured this Gravo about 1am. And I forgot to mention that I ate the last piece of my rotisserie chicken at 2:30am after falling asleep for an hour. I am the vision of beauty and health right now. 

 I did manage to put something healthy in my body this week. The weather in Tokyo has been unusually warm for November/December, so Blamward (credit to sjohnston for coining that hybrid nickname) and I read in Shinjuku Gyoen while soaking up some Vitamin D. The maple leaves were so vibrant this weekend and the old men with big cameras were out in full force capturing the change in seasons. There are two places we inevitably end up at after going to this park. Go Go Curry or a juice shop called ピーまん (Piman).  Blamward loves his green vegetable Mixed Jumbo (it tastes...healthy), while I prefer the Fruits Jumbo.

Japan at its best. 

Tokyo Five Foot Runner :: Week 3

Week 3 was a lot like week 2, but a wee bit harder. It seems as though my excitement is wearing off and my muscles are wearing down. That makes for a bit of a nasty combination, but I did my best to surge on and was rewarded by a somewhat inspiring long run yesterday. Another 10K but this week it felt easier and much less daunting. So, while I got off to a rocky start, things took a turn for the better. Why? Perhaps it was all the Thanksgiving goodies I treated myself to. Nothing will fuel your desire to exercise more than guilt and shame.

The biggest banana ice cream sundae in Japan at the Chelsea Cafe in Shinjuku. 

Addictive Bran Muffins with Bird Seed Topping from the Flour Bakery cookbook. Out of all the scrumptious, buttery, American looking things in the book, the first one I wanted to make most was the Bran Muffins. I need to eat hearty and healthy meals for my weekly runs and this recipe just called out to me. They didn't disappoint.

This week's ABC Cooking Studio Bread :: Pizza! 

Tuesday was a holiday in Japan, so Monday night, Blammo and I had some really good sushi below his place of business. On the left, medium fatty tuna (chutoro) and on the right, fish roe (ikura) and rice. I'm always really surprised at how full you can get eating sushi. 

Sunday Night Dinner and a movie :: POT PIE! People really love pot pie. My sister is a big fan and I've been missing her a lot lately. Bags - this ones for you. 

 Except not really, because this one's for me. It has a K on it. The movie by the way, was The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. Takeaways: 

1. Swedish is a weird language. It sounds like a dutch spoken like Italian. 

2. Men who hate women deserve what's comin' to them. 

3. This is not a great movie to watch while eating dinner. 

4. It is refreshing to watch a non-Hollywood movie now and again. People have wrinkles. Lots of them. 

Can't get enough of that creme fraiche. Whipped with a little sugar and some strawberries. Happy Sunday. It almost made me forget that Monday is pretty much here. 

Tokyo Five Foot Runner :: Week 2

Week 2 is in the books. I ran a little over 15 miles this week including a long run of 10K/6.2 miles today. The weather turned cold for a few days, but dry enough to run outside, which is all I really care about. Yesterday, I had to cross train for 40 minutes. I chose to use an elliptical at the Tokyo Metropolitan Gymnasium in Sendagaya. No membership needed. It's 420 yen to use their gym for 2 hours and there are showers and hot baths. I haven't used an elliptical since I lived in NY so I was shocked to learn how BORING it can be. I'll need to think of a different cross-training activity because that was grueling on the mind.

This week, I successfully signed up to use a women's only running station near the Imperial Palace, my normal running spot. I'm very particular about my running routine. I prefer to go running right after work, but that requires me to change in a public bathroom and put my stuff in a coin locker. Not a big deal, but running stations are much more convenient since you have a few amenities to help you freshen up after your run. I've learned over the past few months, that being visibly sweaty and gnarly isn't very welcome on the trains. There are a few stations around the Palace and other popular running areas, but ABC Cooking Studio has a relationship with a ladies only gym called Bodies, which I learned upon arrival, is the Japanese version of Curves. The Bodies branch in Marunouchi, just a few steps away from the Imperial Palace running route also serves as a running station where you can store you stuff for 500 yen a visit. A little more than a coin locker which is 300 yen, but way more convenient.

So, what have I been fueling myself with this week? Maybe not the healthiest stuff, but definitely tasty stuff! I've vowed to start eating a little more healthy in the weeks to come and thankfully, since Joanne Chang is a pretty hardcore runner, she included some somewhat healthy treats in her Flour cookbook.

This burger tasted a lot less guilty this week. 

ABC Cooking Studio Bread of the Week :: Cinnamon Swirl Bread. This is a good opportunity to point out one of my favorite kitchen purchases of late - a bread cutting board. It came with a serrated knife that fits into the board for storage, and the grated top comes out so you can dump out the crumbs inevitably made when slicing bread. GENIUS!

A made quite a few cookies this week. Chocolate Chip and Oatmeal Raisin. 

 So many, that I had to give some away. I packed a few up in some incoherently cute wax bags and dropped them off at our front desk reception desk. I like our building staff - they're friendly and pretty helpful. Squidward overheard an angry Englishman telling them off this morning, so it seemed like homemade cookies might brighten their spirits. 

And upon our return home, we were greeted with the best thank you card I've ever received. Ever.  

Tokyo Five Foot Runner :: Week 1

The annual New York City Marathon has come and go and even though I'm not living in New York anymore, the excitement and energy of the race has still found it's way to my soft heart. Aside from the US Open, I believe that the NYC Marathon is one of the greatest sporting events to attend. I'm always amazed at the diversity of people running the race (hello Grandma!) and always find myself getting a little teary eyed watching people from around the world challenge time, the city and themselves. This year was extra special since one of my best friends, Ms. Ha, took on the challenge and took one step closer to establishing herself as a true New Yorker. And she rocked it! For just her first marathon, she clocked in at 3:43:34 -- just shy of qualifying for the Boston Marathon! I have no doubt, she'll be qualifying soon. 


Anyways, the point of this is that her commitment to training for a marathon inspired me to sign up for a Half Marathon in January. Actually, Ms. Ha and I ran our first official race together about a year and a half ago and while I have continued running to keep in shape, I haven't run in any races or taken it very seriously since. Well, that all changed this week as I began my preparation for 13.1 miles on January 9th, 2011. 


I'm using Hal Higdon's Novice Half Marathon training schedule because it has the most rest days and didn't muck up my schedule too much. I have to jump in on week 4 since we're only 9 weeks away but with week 1 under my belt, I think I'll be ok. My goals are:

1. Stick to the schedule.
2. Don't get hurt. 
3. Finish the race without stopping. 

So, what does one eat during race training? Well, obviously a lot of carbs and proteins but other than that, I haven't done too much research on the matter. So what did I fuel myself with this week? 

Pasta, duh! I adore this super simple tomato sauce recipe from Smitten Kitchen. It takes less than an hour to make, only has 3 ingredients (canned tomatos, butter and an onion) and is delicious. I made a big batch so it could last the week. Meatballs on day 1, hearty mushrooms on day 2 and just plain on day 3. 

Exercising is a weird thing. Burning all those calories definitely makes you hungry, but not right away. In fact, for hours after my runs, I'm not hungry at all. But then it just hits you. So, in order to avoid a total food coma, I've been craving soups. French Onion soup recipes are floating around the internets at the moment, so I decided to give it a go. Oddly enough, this recipe is very similar to the tomato sauce mentioned above but it takes waaaay longer than 1 hour and instead of tomatos, you add beef broth to the onions and butter. 

Sundays are the long run days. Today wasn't toooo bad - 5 miles. I decided to whip up some wonton soup because I saw some really nice photos on this blog, Joylicious. I added in noodles and lots of veggies to make it more filling - similar to a soup Squidward/Blammo and I used to order from Mama Buddha in the West Village. This soup is delicious and simple, but what I liked most about her recipe post is the story about missing her mother. I miss my mom too Joy! I especially miss her when I get gchats from her like this: 

Mom:  Hi Kimmi,I am online.  I am laughing and drinking , drunk! Have a good day. bye i love you 

I logged in 15 miles this week, more than I've ever run in a 7 day period so I deserve a little treat, no? It's been a very very long time since I've made my chocolate chip cookies so I finally dusted off my recipe and busted out a batch. I missed these little suckers!