RandyStep.com - Obsessed Runner

2015-04-01 - Run smart or don't run

randy running 50 degrees and sunny, a tempting day for a run, especially for those of us who are putting in a few too many miles too soon, and perhaps are dealing with a twinge of training pain besides. Dang. The hardest but smartest part of our sport is to not run a planned workout, especially when we are obsessed with weekly mileage targets and especially when the run you should skip is your long run. "But I am following a schedule and have a race coming up in 3 weeks!" You can't race at all if you are injured or sick but you can race rested and perhaps a bit under trained. Skip the run, work on the core, get a massage, ice any suspicious feeling parts of the body and come back with only a short easy run when it seems safe, maybe in a day, maybe in a few days.

Get out for a ... walk,

Randy Step, an admitted obsessed runner, who is taking a second day off, icing my shin, and will be back out there tomorrow, smarter yet, the day after tomorrow ... Dang.

PS: If you have any connection with anyone with Autism/Asperger Syndrome, might I suggest a book by Tracey Cohen, a runner, writer, long time Running Fit Crew member and an aspie herself. Tracey's insightful, entertaining and easy to read book can help us better understand the complexities of this syndrome. Six-Word Lessons on Females with Asperger Syndrome. If you have any questions feel free to contact tracey, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

PS: Yoga for Runners is back!! with a twist.... We will now start the workout with a 30 minute Run! Classes begin April 9.

2015-03-25 - Light a fire

randy running Today I was the speaker for a lunch series on fitness at the Toyota Tech Center in Saline. I was reminded that when people give running a try, as one woman put it, "it just sucks". It struck me that the truth is, when we try a new physical activity that our bodies and minds don't have a feel for, this makes sense. Nothing good comes easy, especially in running. The benefits come slow but continue to grow as we stick with it. Personal records, increased self-esteem and the pure joy of the runs that are effortless can't be experienced without putting in some hard time at the beginning. For sure this needs to be stressed to the new runner. I think minimally, we should ask them to commit to 3 days a week for 4 weeks while keeping a log that tracks pace, distance and weekly total. This might get them over the first hurdle. The motivational thought of knowing they have a 4 week streak of runs, that will end if they give it up, might be just what they need to keep the fragile little flame lit long enough to get to the blazes of personal glory.

Help someone start a fire,

Randy Step, an admitted obsessed runner, who's kind of like a running arsonist!

PS: It took the Mars rover robot 11 years and two months to complete its very own Martian Marathon! Come see how you match up at THE Martian Marathon and Invasion of Races on April 18, 2015 in Dearborn, MI, Earth!

2015-3-18 - Get your groove on

randy running Variety is the spice of running, I try to get in 3 types of runs each week, one hard paced difficult run, perhaps on hills and one very long run that takes me near my physical limits. The rest are comfortable runs where I can enjoy all the sights and sounds of the world around me while still getting the work done and putting miles in the log. Each run seems to compliment the others, the long run takes the stress out of getting out the door for any shorter distance and the hard runs make me feel like I earned the comfortable runs. Mix it up, keep if fresh and fun so you can run, run, run. That said, as spring unfolds, it is easy to do too much too soon, do not increase your mileage by more than 10% each week. I repeat the important stuff!

Run smart, run forever,

Randy Step, an admitted obsessed runner, who just finished one of those hard paced runs leaving me trashed and happy ... Where I vaguely remember where I ran and if I'm not mistaken, the sun was out.

PS - Spring is upon us and soon we will be hitting the trails! Join us for any one of the following: Trail weekend, Flirt with Dirt, The Legend or Run Woodstock for a great BOGO deal! Buy one entry, get a free entry into our Kegs, Eggs and Scrambled Legs trail celebration!

PS - The Thirsty 3 is BACK in 2015 and better than ever. Be sure to sign up early as all races and distances have limits and will sell out! CHEERS!

2015-03-11 - Free runs!

randy running I'm sure you can relate: I put off the a morning run at 20 degrees opting for the day end run with a predicted high of 40. The morning was still, clear and the sun rise was beautiful. I ran that night in the dark, pouring rain and perhaps mid 30s. Each foot fall was a cold wet shock, you get the picture.

The rule: Never let the weather affect your planned run, when race day dawns, you have no choice in the matter and you better be ready and know how to dress and run in all conditions. Not to mention, there are a ton of things that will come along to thwart the days run, weather should never be one of them. If the rain had been in the AM, should I have still headed out? Didn't I just answer that?

Get out and run, even if it's perfect,

Randy Step, an admitted obsessed runner ... who does admit to digging glorious running days, dang.

PS: Get the spring season started with a couple of FREE RUNS!
- The free Fit 5K! Back by popular demand, Wednesday, March 18th.
- NEW!!! Kegs, Eggs and SCRAMBLED LEGS! Join us April 11th, 2015 for a fun day on the trails with beer and an EGGcelent breakfast!

2015-03-04 - Run, live, smile, die

randy winter The next time someone tells you that running might not make you live longer, just tell them that's OK, I'm just hoping for some compression of morbidity, they will then slink off to google it. The theory, would you rather be living it up and running every day until you are 80 and then just drop dead or would you rather live a sedentary life, develop congestive heart failure at 80, spend 10 years in a nursing home with multiple disease factors, perhaps Alzheimer's and no quality of life, then die at 90?

Get out the door and compress that dang morbidity,

Randy Step, an obsessed runner, who runs many miles each week with my nurse practitioner wife, Dr. Kathy (Doctorate in nursing practice) who specializes in geriatric medicine. Enough said.

P.S. - Have you heard? Registration for the Canton Liberty Run is now open! Join us June 20, 2015 for a 5K, 10K or 1 mile! NEW theme for 2015; Red, white, blue and don't forget your TUTU!

2015-02-25 - Winter Rave Run

randy winter Today's run, sunny, 10 degrees, no wind, on the well packed, snow covered, hilly trails at Bird Hills Park in Ann Arbor. A glorious run with breathtaking winter views and sounds, including the mountain of ice that formed on Barton Dam, a rave run indeed. Yes we've had some wicked winter days where venturing out for the run has been a risky proposition but days like today, as Jimmy Buffet would say, "It was a beautiful day, the kind you want to toast." Don't let the temperature fool you, get out the door each day and experience all the natural world has to offer.

Dig the run,

Randy Step, an admitted obsessed runner, and will be until they throw the dirt on.

PS: Because of the below freezing temps and no fresh snow in a while, most trails are packed flat and have very little ice, as runnable as summer! We can get a jump on training for the trail races this year! Join us for: Trail weekend, Flirt, The Legend, Run Woodstock and more!

2015-02-15 - N=1, go run!

randy sunglasses I repeat the important stuff ... Don't let Ego get in the way of your complete enjoyment of this running life! EVER! Even as an obsessed, life-long runner, when I read a FB posting by someone who just ran a fast 15 mile training run at zero degrees, or any run longer, faster or in conditions that I am currently not capable of running in, I can't help but start to compare myself and get my envy up. Worse yet is to get caught up running with a friend or group at a pace or distance that I should not be running, risking injury. We can NEVER compare ourselves to others, we have different genetics and different life experiences that include past injuries, time restraints, responsibilities and countless variables that play a part in the unique person we are.. We are a study of one (N=1) We need to remember how cool that is as we continue to learn who we are and where we fit into this world. We are each a unique puzzle piece needed to complete history.

Randy Step, an admitted obsessed runner, who runs pretty well in the heat, just sayin'...

PS: Add some spontaneity to your life and join me in Dade City, Florida on March 7th for a bit of trail running. Dances With Dirt is a full moon weekend mid-winter escape. Fly to Tampa, a 50 minute drive Dirt Quarters!

PS: LADIES ONLY: Starting next Wednesday the 25th, Join us every Wednesday morning at 8am from Running Fit Northville for "Coffee and Sneakers" a women's only group run followed by coffee and conversation.

2015-02-11 - Trust Reality: Run!

randy sunglasses "Why intensive jogging is just as unhealthy as being a couch potato". This makes headlines? An article from Evoke.ie throws out a few sound bites from several studies and comes up with this headline, but absolutely no data or facts are presented. You've got to laugh at the term "Intensive jogging", whatever that may be. So again I ask, why does the media give attention to crap like this while diseases of an unhealthy lifestyle place a huge burden on our healthcare resources, not to mention, represent the major cause of death? Do you think they are pandering to the majority? Yikes!

We don't run to escape death, we run to move, to enjoy the natural world and to have the energy necessary for a rich and wonderful life.

Only trust reality, get out an run,

Randy Step, an admitted obsessed runner who is living life in full color because of it!

PS: Join Running Fit's Downtown Ann Arbor Group run along with Brooks for a Shamrocks and Shenanigans course preview run on Monday February 16. Group meets at the downtown Ann Arbor Running Fit location at 123 E. Liberty. Run starts at 6:30pm. Join us post-run at Connor Oneils for food and drinks.

PS: Let's get SHAMROCKIN'! Join us in Ann Arbor on March 8 for the annual Shamrocks and Shenanigans 5K, Kids' K and Kids' Dash! A great way to start the spring running season!

2015-02-04 - Don't miss today

randy sunglasses As we make plans for tomorrow and worry about the future, we rob ourselves of today. The worry is a waste. What we do today, the way we live today, will set us up for the future. Trust your instincts to live, love and learn today the way you want to everyday going forward and it becomes what you do. Tomorrow, you will live for tomorrow and it will be even better than today. An example: head out the door to enjoy the adventure of today's winter run. Yes, It's cold, windy, grey and the footing is awful but you know you will be immediately rewarded for your effort by feeling in command, getting outside these man-made confines and enjoying the natural wonders of nature. You will be building the strength in the ancillary muscles needed to control yourself in the snow and to make you a more powerful and versatile runner tomorrow. You will also be increasing your capacity for endurance, the reality is that you are training for an even more exceptional run tomorrow. You will be ready to race and be able to run longer, not by planning but by living and doing!

Live, run, and more will come,

Randy Step, an admitted obsessed runner, today.

PS: Love is in the air... We love running, fellowship and fun. Join us for a fun run that includes chocolate, wine and flowers on February 12th. Who knows, you may meet a like minded runner to celebrate Valentine's Day with! Running Fit - Northville location, 6:30PM. Questions: 248.380.3338

PS: Get ready to go INTERGALACTIC with RF Events! Join us for the Martian Invasion of Races on April 18! The perfect spring race with a distance for everybody. Check martianmarathon.com for more info, NANU, NANU!

2015-01-28 - Running = Peace

randy sunglasses With so much uncertainty, our running passion can be the constant that make sense out of a world that often does not seem to make any sense at all. In these fast changing times, job security is a notion of the past, add to that technological advances happening so often that keeping pace adds a stress to our lives never experienced before. And then there is terrorism that is absolutely insane, a country so divided ... You get the point. Running is always there for us, just out the door ready to clear our heads. Running, an unplugged, back to the basics experience that resets us mentally and physically . When the world drags us away from our daily run, it's great to know the run waits patiently for us and always welcomes us back.

Keep your log, keep the faith,

Randy Step, an admitted obsessed runner who is about to close this laptop, put on a bunch of layers and head out on the trail to reboot.

PS: Speaking of certainty and stability in running, last year we celebrated the 20th Dances With Dirt extreme trail event and next year we will celebrate the 30th running of the Running Fit Trail Marathon Weekend. The Martian Invasion of Races is closing in on 15 years and Run Woodstock is getting into the groove as it hits year 6 (I think this event came along just in time for those of us that needed a healing weekend of peace, love, music and of course, running. Just knowing Run Woodstock will be part of our year brings down the blood pressure). That said, our goal is to put on events that will stand the test of time, events that will be there for us like the daily run. We promise to stay true to the culture, no fad runs, sure some fun themes but always measured, timed events to come back to each year, like going home to our running family!

PS: All Running Fit locations offer weekly group runs.We will help you run through the winter! Ask your local store for details.