It's vacation time again

Hi blogger friends! I am happy to report that I have been on holiday until now and the vacation in South Italy has been AWESOME. In the first photo above you can see my daughters' rabbit.
After we had gone to Paris my family and I left for another summer vacation and I had not computer and internet use. The last week of July which we spent in France was beautiful but it's a real pity that my daughters' suitcase went lost. Air France haven't found it yet and I'll ask them to pay damages estimated at € 15 per kilo, considering that our lost luggage weighed 14 kilos.

South Italy's beaches were nice, the sea wasn't polluted and the weather was sunny and beautiful. Perfect! When we arrived we saw a burnt hill and it was a big damage. Unfortunately, a lot of olive trees had been destroyed! The photo above shows the burnt hill.
During the vacations I ate different meals. French cakes were very good: in Paris we had "pain au raisin" and "tartre aux pommes" at breakfast and in South Italy we had almond cake (you can see it in the photo below). Moreover, in August there're a lot of figs in South Italy and they gave a big contribution to my weight :)... as a consequence I have to lose weight now. At least 2 kilos! But this isn't a problem. Next week I'll begin a running plan and the 29th of August I and Stefano are running a short 6 km race. We'll run it as training.
I have just read that a lot of running friends of our blogger community are on vacation again. I hope all you enjoy the rest of this beautiful summer!

Paris

As suggested by Martin, I ran on the quays along the Seine. It's a nice place to run and last thursday at 07:00 a.m. I saw a lot of people who were running next to that beautiful river.
We stayed five days in Paris and while we were walking on the night through the square of Notre-Dame we met a nice pair from San Francisco (California). They were very kind and took a photo which you can see here below.
The weather was beautiful and sunny. Visiting the Louvre Museum takes on overage 1 day! I suggest you should buy tickets the day before. After we had visited Notre-Dame, which is the symbol of medieval Paris, we walked up 400 steps to the top of the South tower of the Cathedral. 46 metres above the ground and from there we saw the whole of Paris and a lovely view over the river Seine and its bridges.

During the last two days we went to the left bank of the river Seine where we visited the oldest houses in the latin distict and Saint Germain de pres. There is a very useful river boat shuttle service along the Seine.
Unfortunately, after we had come back from Paris I and my wife didn't find a part of the luggage. The biggest of our three suitcases wasn't in the Rome airport. We were really disappointed with this and "Air France customers assistance" here in Rome said that they will send us the luggage as soon as it arrives from Paris.

Tomorrow we are going to Gaeta, in South Italy.
Have a nice summer!

On holiday

I'm on holiday now. So I'm going to France with my family and tomorrow the flight to Paris starts at 08:55 a.m. My daughters are so excited because they would like to visit the Eiffel Tower, the Louvre Museum, and Notre-Dame. But first of all they would want to go to the Galerie La Fayette. Of course, I'm taking my running shoes :)
Nice Sunday to all blogger friends!

Motivation

In this half of the world that is North of equator it's summer time now. This means biking, riding, beach and swimming. Of course , swimming on the sea. Although I'm not running a race in July and August I wouldn't want to lose my speed. So I'll do only one quality workout per week and in the same week two days of easy work. Moreover I'll sometimes run a long run.
Now I feel that I have to maintain my desire to run. In this perspective I go swimming once or twice a week. I think that if our running isn't fun, we have to make same changes. For example, run fewer days (during this summer I'll do it), try trail running or join a running group. We always need to find motivation which is a powerful force that can help us enjoy our running more. Motivation is more than a feeling. It's important that we'll feel better after a run than before it.

I hope you'll enjoy the rest of this weekend.

Hilly training

Last week we planned a long run along the coast (path flat). So yesterday I met the running group at Oliveto's Park at 06:30 p.m. and began the training. But after we had done the warm up we suddenly decided to run our long run through the hills behind the town. Although it was hot there were a lot of trees along the wonderful hilly paths. We ran 1 hour and 25 minutes and I didn't run fast down hill. I decided to be careful.

An old fountain, which we found on the top of the higher hill, helped us. It was built in the natural reserve about 40 years ago because wild cows and donkeys live there. You can see the fountain in the photo below posted. The landscape was beautiful and the paths of that natural reserve weren't dangerous. Once again, running gave me a nice picture of the environment.

This week began with the hilly and hard training above mentioned and, as a consequence, today I didn't swim and didn't go to the beach. I was tired. During this week If I have time I'll go to the ancient roman thermal baths where there's the hot sulphur water. Stefano showed on his blog a photo of this interesting place http://cavnero.blogspot.com/

I hope everyone will have a nice training.

Swimming on the sea

This week I ran three times and I swam once. Yesterday I swam on the sea 20 minutes at 06:00 p.m. after working. The water wasn't polluted and the beach was wonderful. Perfect! Next Sunday I'll swim again on the sea and next week I'll do a long run training. Of course, I always choose a different route on long run. If our training is stimulating we'll enjoy it. What I'm trying to say is that we don't need to run the same 16 km on the same course at the same time of day as always. In other words, we could refresh our enthusiasm and we would have to change the distance, the speed, the route, the landscape and the hills. Moreover, new hilly paths make us stronger :)
In the pictures I show the beach which is situated in the Southern part of the town. In the photo below I'm on the right and the skin of my friend is more tanned because he is on holiday :)

I hope that all you blogger friends will have a nice running and swimming weekend!

Change of scenery

I'd need to give my body and mind a break! Last week I ran less than other weeks. I went swimming twice, 25 minutes on Wednesday and 30 minutes on Saturday. But I swam in the sea and as a consequence I didn't try to work harder than in a regular pool. During this summer I'm going to run three times a week and swimming (or biking) twice a week.
I'm not running a race in July and August, so I'm doing something other than running to give my body and mind a break. Since the 25th of June I've started cycling and swimming once or twice a week. Of course I'm not training for triathlons. If these activities gave me a stronger aerobic engine my running would improve. I should usually see some gains.
I've read a debate focused on the relation between running and routine: the psychological effects of following the same routine can be just as limiting. After about only three or four weeks of the same low or high intensity training program, the benefit of running tend to decrease. Most experts say that "runners are creatures of habit, but this can be often lead to stagnating performance".

I hope that all you blogger friends of that running community will have a nice training!

7 km up hill and 7 km down hill

This is a hot and beautiful Sunday and this morning we did a hard long run on the hill behind the town. I met two friends of the running group at 07:30 a.m. near the Oliveto's Park and after the warm up we ran 14 km. Of course, we ran 7 km up hill and 7 km down hill and we didn't run fast along the second 7 km down hill. Although the average pace was about 6 mins/km the training was interesting. The time taken was 1 hour and 24 minutes and we ran slow up hill because it was hard. But we ran slow the down hill too because we always think that down hills might be dangerous. For example, running fast down hills might be dangerous for knees. But it was a good training session. Moreover, the night before that hard long run I had had pizza with some friends of the running group. Carbohydrates guaranteed!

As you know, the Italian soccer team didn't go through the second round of the FIFA World Cup. Italy lost 3-2 against Slovakia the last match of Pool F of South Africa 2010 World Cup and is thus dramatically, eliminated :( A blogger friend from France, Martin Briars, wrote that footballers are paid too much to do too little. I absolutely agree with this!

Now I hope that the final match of the 2010 FIFA World Cup will be between Argentina and Netherlands. Today an interesting match between Germany and England starts at 04:00 p.m.

I think Germany is stronger than England and has a young team. So German national football team will be the winner in this match ... but I also support England team with an Italian coach and it will be dilemma for me. Good luck to both teams :)

Italian soccer team needs to win

I began this week with 50 minutes relaxed run on Monday and yesterday I ran 1 hour and 10 minutes and the average pace was 4.50 min./km. I think it was a nice training session. I ran both training session around the Southern side of the town. On Friday I'm doing a workout which would improve speed and I've planned a long run during next weekend. This week I'm not running a race. The 3rd of July I'll run the Bolsena's 10 km race where I could run along a nice track next to the Bolsena's lake. I ran it three years ago.
In the picture below you can see my daughters with their friends. The Italian flag had been painted on their faces. Today the soccer macth Italy - Slovakia starts at 04:00 p.m. and Italian team needs to win.

We’re not thinking about elimination and we have to think positively. The only result that interests us is victory. Of course, if our soccer team didn't win Italy wouldn't go through to the second round in the World Cup.
My daughters' friends

I hope all you have nice training sessions.

Workout against the wind

This morning I did the workout with the running group. It was hard because we ran against a strong wind. After we had run 20 minutes warm up we ran 3 x 20 minutes fast with 4 minutes recovery. In the meanwhile Stefano ran a great race around the Montalto's power station where he got a nice loot and improved his time taken.
You can see his race report: http://cavnero.blogspot.com/
On the soccer world cup front, this afternoon the meeting between world champions Italy and Oceanian outsiders New Zealand starts at 04:00 p.m. in Nelspruit, South Africa. http://www.fifa.com/ Never underestimate opponents: look at Spain vs Switzerland!

Have a nice Sunday!

Workout on Sunday

I'm not running a race next weekend and on Sunday I'll do a workout with the running group through the Southern part of the town and arouund the natural reserve. We'll probably run 20 minutes warm up and 3 x 20 minutes fast with 4 minute recovery.
We're planning our next race and maybe we'll run the Bolsena lake 10 km race which starts the 3rd of July at 06:30 p.m.
A nice running weekend to everyone!

Formula Run Cup

Next Sunday we're going to Rome where the Formula Run Cup starts at 09:30. The 10 km race will be held in support of Save the Children. I'll have a breakfast of 300 to 500 calories two hours before the starting and I won't forget to eat carbs the night before the race. Maybe I'll have pizza with my family and other friends.
Now I post a photo of a nice old and small village which I saw this week while I was working. It is situated in the middle of Italy, 60 km North of Rome, and is connected by a narrow walkway to reality and to the surrounding countryside.

Entering the ancient city gate we feel that we're leaving the real world. It isn't a place to running and ... there are 15 inhabitants only! From 2002 some English people have bougth old houses in this small supernatural world.
http://www.civitadibagnoregio.it/english/civita/history.htm
I hope that all my blogger friends will have a nice weekend.

through the industrial area

There wasn't race for me this weekend but I ran 14 km with the running group. After we had done the first 5 km warm up and slow run, we began the workout, 8 x 4.30 minutes fast with 1 minute recovery. During the workout the average pace was 4.30 min/km. But we ran a strange route this morning. At the beginning we ran through the old part of the town and along the pedestrian area of the town. Then we ran through the industrial area because on Sunday there aren't trucks. Consequently, there isn't polluted air. It was a sunny Sunday and a great training session! If we ran the same route we wouldn't see the same average pace.
It's been said that runners don't like runninng the same route twice. We sometimes run the same route two minutes faster or two minutes slower than last time. I think that the comparison made between running the same distance hasn't validity. We can't recreate the exact circumstances of the previous training or on race day. We can't have the same weather and the same amount of sleep or food. We can't have the same people around us.
I show you a photo ot the pedestrian area which is situated in the middle of the town. I took this photo two months ago from the helicopter and but isn't a sharp image.

stretching

With regard to my post about stretching, which I wrote the 23th of May, I describe Martin's comment. He's a 75 km trail runner from Mont Sait Aignon, France, http://martinbriars.blogspot.com/ and he saw a sports doctor who was with the French Olympic athletics team in Sydney.
Martin wrote most stretching should be before we actually run, and certainly not right after. He added that we would have to spend at least 20 mins light stretching before we run. Of course we would have to begin the run and the warm up very slowly.
The French doctor told him that after the run and after a shower he would have to begin very light stretching again. The idea he explained was that stretching a muscle which "may have trauma" will not be good!
On the contrary, most blogger friends who like running always say: "don't stretch before you've warmed up!". Maybe there are different approaches to many stretches.
On the running front, I ran 20 kn on Sunday and 10 km slow run on Monday. Tomorrow I'll do 12 km tempo run in the afternoon. Today I didn't run. It was a rest day and I followed my daughters who were playing tennis. I took some photos while they were playing tennis and I felt they were happy because I was there. I show you three photos here below.

Good training sessions to all you!

Running in the dark

Thanks to everyone for your suggestions about "running in the dark". I've stumbled three times on stones and roots while I've been running through the countryside :( Moreover, three years ago while I was running along trail paths I fell during a "dogs attack"!! But I think that running on the road is more dangerous than running through the countryside. Most runners have stumbled on those circle wires which I mentioned in my last post. While we are running on the route we sometimes see those parts of the car which I show in the first photo below. We can also find dangerous wires along the route (second photo).

Running in the dark through the town is amazing! But we would have to follow some suggestions. For example, Julie from Minnesota said if she run in the dark she will make sure to have a running lamp and Christine from Arizona will sometimes run along a street with lights.
My friend Stefano wrote in his comment that Bruce Springsteen dances in the dark and the Black Knight Army will always run in the dark :)
Have a nice running weekend!

Wire rim iron

The question of this post was inspired by Char, from Brisbane http://char-mylifesamarathon.blogspot.com/ , with her post of the 23th of May. She wrote about her relaxed 12 kilometers run in almost total darkness.

During our training sessions we sometimes run along the route. As you know, car wheels sometimes lose auto spare parts, such as wire rim iron. This is a danger! If a runner didn't see this wire rim iron he'd stumble. In this way some runners fell while they were running along the route. Moreover, the problem with running in darkness is that you can't see a pothole. That's why I don't like to run in almost total darkness.

Maybe I haven't bored you with this short post :) Thanks to everyone for last comments and advices about stretching. I hope you all blogger friends enjoy your runs next weekend!

Hamstring stretch

I've planned to go to Tuscania on Sunday, where a 10 kilometers race started at 10:00 a.m. Although this morning was sunny and beautiful I didn't run that race because I didn't feel very good. This morning while I was waking up I felt weak, so I decided to do a relaxing long run. After I had run 18 kilometers at an average pace of 05:50 I did stretching near my house. I did one of these stretching drills with one leg up on a fence trying to reach for my toes. I think that this is a classic hamstring stretch but someone says it may do more harm than good. I don't understand why.

Other runners advise to stand on one leg with knee slightly bent and hold our other leg under or knee. Our hamstring is parallel with the floor. Of consequence, we would have to hold for two second and then we would bring our heel back under our knee. I'm curious to know what do you Think about this. I hope that all you are getting an effective stretching :)

A special good luck to Anne and Amy for their first half marathon :) Have a good running everyone!

Running team dinner

This weekend I haven't run races. Although the weather wasn't nice, this morning I ran 16 km long run. I'm trying to maintain the long distance running. It's very strange that the weather has been so cold and rainy since last Monday. We ran the first two kilometres in the light rain, then the weather became sunny and from the 4th to the 8th kilometer we ran through the countryside. After the rain the smell of vegetation was more intense. From the 9th to the 11th kilometer we ran near the sea. The sea air smelt good while we were running along the coast.

On Saturday evening we had a dinner with the running team (somebody is sending me the photo of the dinner and I'll post that image as soon as I receive it). We went to a small village situated on the hills near the town, where we could eat boar meat. Stefano wasn't there because he had gone to a wedding. For the reason he's angry because he would like to be there with us.

Next Sunday I'll try to run the Tuscania's 10 km race. In the photo below you can see the Tuscania's mediaeval castle and the old church. Near that old town there's a gren valley, which I showed in my post of the 5th of May. It is a nice protected area. That mediaeval city dominates the area, with its perfectly preserved old centre. Behind turreted walls and towers there are ancient churches, palaces, alleys, arches, portals and fountains which you can see in the image below. I took this photo one month ago.

I hope that all you'll enjoy the rest of this weekend!

Rome's Campus race

Yesterday 1115 people ran that 10 km race through the southern part of Rome, near the Campus. It was a beautiful and sunny Sunday, perfect. The track was actually nice and pleasant although the last 2 km were up-hill and this was a very challeging part of the route. I enjoyed the race and the time taken was 44:06 minutes. Stefano is posting a more detailed report on his blog.
Today I ran again. I did 45:57 minutes slowly ... but I ran in the rain. Thank you to everyone for all of your support and comments.

Campus

Tomorrow I'm going to Rome with my friend Stefano and his son. The 10km Campus race starts at 10:00 a.m. and the weather might be sunny.
In the meanwhile, I've posted the link of Julie's blog because she posted her first giveaway to celebrate getting over 100 awesome followers. You can see that link in this page (down the clock).
I hope all my blogger friends will have a nice running weekend!

The Marta river valley

Last Sunday I ran 15 km (long run) and Monday I ran 1 hour and 10 minutes (relaxing run).
This afternoon I had run 50 minutes (tempo run) before it rained and next Friday I'm running 1 hour slowly. I'm going with Stefano to Rome next Sunday where the Campus 10km Race starts at 10 a.m.
Maybe I'd need to go swimming once a week. I'll try to go swimming next month, so I'll run four times a week and I'll swim once a week. As a consequence, twice a week rest.
In the photo below posted you can see that today clouds are covering Central Italy. The image shows the Marta river valley which is situated between Tuscany and my town. This morning I went there for job and that valley does look ideal for a run.
I hope all my blogger friends will have a nice training!

Simple potatoe dish

As requested by Julie I write here below the recipe of the potatoe dish which I mentioned on this blog last Friday.

Ingredients:
2 pounds small potatoes, white or red
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 cloves garlic, finely minced
1 teaspoon (scant) dried leaf thyme
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, or to taste
Preparation:
Heat oven to 450°. potatoes cut into slices.
In a large bowl, toss potatoes with the oil, garlic, thyme, salt, and pepper.
Transfer potatoes to a baking pan and arrange in layers. Bake for 40 to 45 minutes, until potatoes are browned.

As you know, runners need to eat carbohydrates, so I'm glad to write on my blog this recipe of a very simple potatoe dish :)

Yesterday was a beautiful and sunny Saturday and I didn't run. We went on the beach where we spent a lazy Saturday. On the contrary, today the weather is rainy and this morning I ran 14 km in the soft rain. I didn't race this Sunday.
Now I'm going to read your training sessions and races' reports on your blogs :)

Water and bananas

We've sometimes received water and bananas after a half marathon or a marathon. While we're running the last two kilometers of a long run race we could feel weak and our legs might start to cramp. Thanks in part to that water and bananas the body's imbalance returns to normal in about an hour. Of course water hydrates and bananas supply potassium which is of particular importance to runners. Potassium is a mineral which maintains fluids and electrolyte levels within the body. It helps in recovery and may also protect against hearth disease.
As I'm sure you're aware, we could find potassium in so many common foods such as spinach, carrot, orange and yogurt. Moreover, I've recently read that dry figs and other dried fruits have a high concentration of potassium. But how could we keep our potassium optimal levels every day? I don't know, but I'm sure that lots of fast foods are low in potassium. Of consequence, it's best to concentrate on eating a wide variety of whole foods every day.

After I had wrote this post I tried to find potassium in the meal :) So, we cooked potatoes with garlic, low-fat cheese and olive oil. And we didn't lose much time to cook it.

Running and advanced thinking

I've always read on your runner's blogs that running makes you feel good. As you know, most runners wrote that they feel extremely relaxed after they run. Other blog's friends said that running helps their psychic equilibrium. What I'm trying to say is that running makes you happier.
It's scientific fact that the use of exercise improves cognitive functioning in both young and old people. I've read on a runner's magazine the relationship between phisical activity and mental penformance. In other words, active people are better problem solvers and think fast.
Some professionals say that their craft depends on running. While they are running they get into a "zone that allows them to solve problems". I sometimes feel that the spatial imagination is activated by running.
A scientific analysis of the University of Ulm, in Germany, shows that brain's neurotrasmitters increase during phisical activity. That's why running would enhance our ability to solve problems.
In this perspective, if I have a learning or memory problem I will run more :)
I hope that I haven't bored you.
Have a nice running weekend.

Tarquinia's 11.2 km race

A very hard race was held this morning in Tarquinia, an old small town near the Tuscan border. In this sunny morning about 400 people ran 11.2 km with three hard up-hills. The runners met dangerous steep slopes along the track and I didn't run fast those down-hills. On the contrary, the landscape was beautiful during that race because we ran through the old town and around the medieval wall. After the race I visited the old side of the town where we had run. The time taken was 51:19 minutes.
Ultimately I enjoyed that race and improved slightly the averaqe pace. While I was crossing the finish line I felt good. I hope that all you will have a nice week and a good training.

12 kilometers "green" race

I think that I have to run the races which are held in my town. Although since the 1st of April I've got weight, this morning I decided to run the "Vivicittà" 12 kilometers race. Before we began to run the warm up I and Stefano had met some friends who wore green T-shirts. They were "green" runners because the race had been held in support of environmental protection. The atmosphere was very friendly and the weather was cloudy. I show you some photos of those "green" runners and I am near the two dogs with green T-shirts.


In the next photo you can see the two black knights before the race.

The track of the 12 kilometers race was hard and we ran four steep up hills. The time taken was 55:20 minutes.

Training through the protected area

This time I didn't improve my running time and I didn't enjoy the training. I ran 10 km and the time taken was 54:39 minutes. Maybe I gained weight during last Easter weekend because I had eaten plenty of Easter's pastries, chocolate eggs and other Easter food. The main part of the track which we ran this afternoon was inside the protected area.

After we had crossed the Southern Suburbs we ran a hard up hill. Then we followed the path through a green valley of the natural reserve and we ran along the mediterranean forest. Today the landascape was better than the training. In the first photo above posted you can see a view of the small protected area with some typical Italian cattles. Then I showed you the spring colours of the mediterranean forest

and the hard up hill above mentioned. I hope that I'll improve the next training.

Easter time

I arrived at the Park early enough to do a short warm-up on my own before meeting up with the small running group. The time taken during that training session was 1 hour, 14 minutes and 26 seconds. This time I didn't improve the speed but I maintained my pace. We run 14,12 km along the Southern side of the town and through the countryside. My average pace was 5:16 min/km.

As you know we need a well balanced meal after running. If you see the photo below posted you can see the Italian Easter’s pastry which contains both proteins and carbohydrates. It is made from a very special and old recipe which has two particular ingredients which make it unique: moisture taken from the orange tree blossom and cooked wheat. Also used in the recipe are "ricotta" cheese, candid fruit and classic short pastry. Making the Easter’s pastry does not require any great ability.
Happy Easter to you all.

Wild asparagus

Thanks all blog's friends for the happy birthday wishes! Yesterday I wore the new running clothes which my family gave me for my birthday. After I had run 2 km warm up I ran 14 km throught the countryside in the Southern surrondings of the town. In that sunny afternoon the average pace was 05:14 min/km. Our running team wasn't there and I ran with a friend of mine this relaxing training.
There were some wild donkeys along the track. They live in this special patche of Mediterranean forest and this environment may become a small protected area near the town. While we were running we saw a lot of wild asparagus near the path. Today I've sought them and maybe we'll prepare the Asparagus salad with potatoes this evening.

Now I have to help my family to prepare the pastry of Easter. Its name is "Pastiera" and it has to be cooked with some days advance. This pastry takes time to prepare and requires presoaked grain. I'm going to buy its exotic ingredients such as cinnamon and vanilla extract. This is my contribution.

In the first photo above posted you can see the new running clothes. The other two photos show you the wild asparagus and the protected wild donkeys.

New running clothes

It's a particular day because I was born 49 years ago today. It's my birthday.
In spring we will see a temperate climate without extremes of temperature, so my family has given me new running clothes as a present. The shorts are black and I'm sure that my friend Stefano will be happy because it's the colour of the Black Knight running team which we founded in 1996. I'm having birthday dinner with my family and some friends this evening.
You can see the birthday's gift in the photo below posted.

10 km tempo run

Yesterday in the afternoon we ran actually 10.01 km after we had run the warm up. Them we ran 10 km around the Southern part of the town, through the tourist port and next to the see. I've improved slightly again considering the last three trainings: the time taken during yesterday's 10 km tempo run was 50:08 minutes. The average pace was 05:01 min/km.
Tomorrow in the afternoon I'm running a long distance run and of consequence about 800 calories will be burned. In this perspective, we have made a cake that you can see in the photo below posted. So, I'll have some carbohydrates at breakfast before tha training. :)