Summer brings warmer weather, picnics, swimming and baseball games. It also brings a change in my attitude towards running. This summer I decided to go back to the race that started it all: the 5k. For the past four years I've been concentrating on half marathons and marathons, only running a 5k here or there, for a specific charity I wanted to support. After running my second Pittsburgh Marathon in May and logging a significant personal best, I decided it was the perfect time to switch up my goals and focus on running faster; not further. In addition, training for a marathon can be extremely time comsuming, not to mention, also painful. Plus there is usually a hefty race entry fee. Also months of training can be smothered away by a blistering hot and humid day.

Running a 5k is completely different. Since I've been running several years now, I can put in one to three weeks of preparation for a 5k. Or I can have no preparation and just "wing it". (I don't recommend this, although I did just that in June.) I'm not saying that 5ks are easy. To the contrary, I've found some 5ks to be more difficult than some half marathons I've run.

My first summer 5k was on June 7th through Mt. Lebanon. I didn't train at all for this race because we had just got back from our vacation on June 1st. While I had done a lot of walking on vacation, I didn't run at all so I wasn't sure how it would go. On top of not running for a few weeks, this was in my top three hardest 5ks I've ever done. Hills! Hills! Hills! The first 2 miles of the race went fine, but during the last mile the heat and hills got to me and I slowed down A LOT! I really wanted to finish under 30 minutes but couldn't manage to pick up any speed and ended up with a time of 30:19.

My second summer 5k was the Brentwood Firecracker on July 4th. Typically July is a very warm month in Pittsburgh, but when I awoke on July 4th is was a beautiful sixty degrees with no humidity! It was absolutely perfect for running!

I really enjoyed this race because Brentwood holds the race right before their Fourth of July parade and there's a great crowd! This race really felt like a mini marathon with all the spectators lining the streets. I wouldn't call the course hilly, but it is rolling. My second mile ended up being my fatest and I finished strong. Although "kicking it in for the finish" seemed to be more like holding on to my pace, I ended up running a 27:43. I was really happy with this because I hadn't run a sub 28 minute 5k since 2009.

The third 5k I ran this summer was the Brookline Breeze. This race is mostly on Brookline Boulevard and it's hilly! The course starts out going up a long uphill. My goal going into the race was to be under 30 minutes, but with hills and summer temperatures I wasn't sure if that was doable. After surviving the first long hill I felt like I could cruise through the course for a bit. Mile 2 included another uphill but it didn't affect me much. At the turnaround I felt like I had a decent pace I could maintain, but a turn through a church parking lot and another uphill slowed me quite a bit. The last mile I basically tried to run as fast as I could to get under 30 minutes. But I didn't quite make it and ended up finishing in 30:32.

I had a lot of fun during my summer of 5ks.  It's really a great event and a way to get a lot of people and communities involved.  I also have a long term goal of running a sub 25 minute 5k.  I think this is going to be one of my goals for next summer.  I just need to find a flat race in Pittsburgh!  Anyone know of one?

I also want to thank my husband, Bobby for running all the summer 5ks with me.  He really keeps me motivated and helps me when I'm struggling during races.  

Now, I'm looking forward to fall running.  Hopefully I'll reap the benefits of running in the heat and humidity and running in the fall will feel easy again.  It's really a great time to run with the leaves changing, the crisp air and the low temperatures.  I'm thinking about trying some new distance races this fall too such as a 6.6k.   What races are on your schedule this fall?

I'm so excited to announce that I've published my first book entitled, Sunday Mornings.  My book contains photographs that I took of the City of Pittsburgh while running!  That's right, I love to snap photos on my iPhone as I run.  I've been doing this for two years and in April I decided to make a book out of my collection.  I'm thrilled with the results.  If you love to run, and love Pittsburgh, then check out the link below to preview my book. Thank you!

I was basking in the sun on the Delaware beaches.  I had just completed my first 5k and had even won my age group.  In between dips into the ocean, I found myself discussing my accomplishment to a man and woman who had also ran the race.  I told them how I was so excited to complete my first 5k because I had been a sprinter in high school and at one time could have only dreamed of running three consecutive miles.

That’s when he blurted it out, “Your thighs are huge.”

I didn’t get upset or mad.  I just felt perplexed. I didn’t know how to respond.  For his part I think it was a foot-in-mouth, not-meant-to-offend comment.  But it still left me feeling confused.  No one had ever told me that my thighs were huge.  It wasn’t like they were out of proportion with the rest of my body or I had to search the mall for pants wider in the thigh.  Was it a compliment?  I wasn’t sure.

For a while there’s been a trend circulating the internet called the “thigh gap” This bothers me.  It doesn’t bother me on a personal level, but it bothers me because I think about the young teenage girls that are bombarded with images of the “thigh gap” and other so called “ideals".  I was fortunate to spend my high school years without social media and constant reminders of what I should expect to be.  I’m worried that young girls will see those images and think; “I need to have the ‘thigh gap’” I’m here to tell them, “You don’t need it.”

As a teenager I was fortunate to have positive experiences playing team sports including volleyball and basketball and also running track.  My coaches never cared about my weight.  How high could I jump? How fast could I run? It was our performance that mattered, not our appearance.  I never had any concern over my weight or my clothing size.  The only thing I cared about was if I was improving at my sport.  But usually when I was good at my sport, I felt good about myself.

I can’t remember the last time I had a “thigh gap” or if I ever even had one.  If I was standing on that beach today hearing about my “huge” thighs I’d probably have a response.  I’d say how my thighs are one of my favorite body parts.  I’d say how even when I gain weight they still look strong and in shape.  I’d talk about how they enable me to walk stairs of an observation tower to enjoy a wonderful view.  I’d mention how they could walk for miles without getting tired or can squat over one hundred pounds.  I would add how they have carried me over twenty-six miles without collapsing and gave me more confidence than I ever knew I could have.  I would say they make me feel grateful and proud, and that’s something no one will ever make me feel bad about.

We arrived in Munich around four thirty on Saturday, May 24th. I had been sad about leaving Paris, but once we reached Germany I was excited to learn about a new culture and a different way of life, and was it ever different from the Parisians.

Upon arrival we walked from the train station to our hotel, Hotel Bavaria. I was impressed as soon as we walked in the door. We quickly got checked in and went up to our room. Compared to our Paris room, it was huge!

After checking in to the hotel, we ventured out for our first meal in Munich.  Our hotel receptionist suggested a Bavarian restaurant a few blocks away. If the French cafés are refined and sophisticated, then the Bavarian beer halls are the complete opposite. We arrived at Augustiner Braustuben on a Saturday night and it was rowdy! As we entered, we were seated at a long wooden table with two other couples who are also tourists. None of us could speak German, but fortunately there were English menus on hand. We reviewed our menus in the midst of shouting, singing and toast-giving.

"This reminds me of...", I begin.

"A sporting event?" my husband finished my sentence.

Yes. That's exactly what this scene reminded me of. It felt like pre game tailgating before a NFL football game.

Beer is the obvious beverage to order here. The only decision to be made is type and size. There are bachelor and bachelorette parties here too. The bridesmaids are wearing black tshirts with pink lettering but I can't decifer any of the German words.

Our food is served and it's a heavy dose of meat and potatoes with gravy covering the entire plate. It reminds me of "comfort food" my Mom would serve on a cold winter day. After a long day of train travel, it hits the spot. As we leave the beer hall, we buy German chocolate from a girl dressed as a beer maid.

"It's for the groom," she points towards the end of the table. "He's getting married."

We leave a few Euros and take a piece of German chocolate.  On the way back to our hotel, we stop to pick up a few more beers at a local store.  After filling our stomach's on beer and chocolate, we have a peaceful night's sleep.

The following day after having breakfast in our hotel we decided to visit the old town in Munich. It's within walking distance, so we walk there to see more sites.  One of the first stops is in Marienplatz, which is a central square in the middle of Munich.  New City Hall is the grandest building in the square.  We arrive just in time to hear the bells ringing for noon. Figurines move in the tower while the bells ring out.  The sights and sounds remind me of the clocks my Grandfather use to build.

After visiting the square and a neighboring park we visit our second beer hall.  This time we visited the famed Hofbrauhaus. As we enter we look for a hostess, but there isn't one and seating seems to be on your own. We walk around the beer hall deciding where to sit. It's huge! We find a table and our waiter quickly brings us a German menu. Bobby and I both have German ancestry, but we don't speak a word of it. In Germany, we were often spoke to in German, and met with perplexed looks when we couldn't respond.  We request an English menu.

Table manners aren't necessary here.  There's plenty of names carved into our wooden table. Beers are served in only two sizes: a liter and a half liter. I opt for the smaller one and Bobby opts for the larger one.

Beer maids walk around selling the largest pretzels I've ever seen.  It's early afternoon here but there's already a band playing and people of all ages are dancing and singing. The mood is decidedly festive not just in the beer halls, but all over Munich.  The city is beautiful with many green spaces and parks.  It seemed to bustle with construction seen everywhere.  Still it seems small and quaint and not yet touristy.  In my mind, this makes Munich even more appealing.  We only spent two days here but I'm already wanting to come back.  Beyond the beer halls there are tours, bike rides and even castles that I would like to visit. 

While my memories of Munich will be full of much happiness there will always be an aspect of sadness. Just hours before we departed for our overnight train to Venice, I learned that my Grandmother had passed away. She was 94 years old and had lived a long and happy life, but the news still seemed sudden and shocking. In many ways her influence had inspired me to take this trip to Europe. When Bobby and I would visit her, she often told us stories of living in Spain and Brazil. She also had traveled to fourteen foriegn countries with my Grandfather. That's quite impressive considering her travels took place before computers, cell phones, email and online bookings.

While it was hard to be away from home and receive the news, in some ways it seemed fitting that I was in Germany when I found out. My Grandmother wasn't German, but her husband and my Grandfather was. He passed away in 2002 and she was lonely without him. Many things in Munich reminded me of him: the clocks he would build, the figurines he would carve. Even the Germans random outbreak into singing reminded me of him. It was comforting to have so many things remind me of him, but I was also sad. I had only wished that I would be able to tell her about this trip. But I took comfort in thinking they were reunited again, and watching over Bobby and I as we continued our journey.