Terrible Wife, Great Running Partner

We are still training for the Rock 'n' Roll Chicago 1/2 Marathon that is on August 1st. We've also been taking co-ed group fitness classes at Aspire. I also had a consultation with a personal trainer to get set up on using the weight room. I like using the weights because I can go down a list of nicely organized exercises that my trainer (a triathlete from New Zealand) made just for me. I also really like the co-ed classes more than the women's classes because they are more difficult. The Group Fitness class has each person moving every 2 minutes to different stations in groups of 3 or 4. In the Total Fat Loss class we stay at stations for 4 minutes. By the time we're half way around the room M and I both are dripping with sweat. I love it! However, after two weekends of not doing our long run, we made a fatal error the night before our run.

Last week we decided to go to the Thursday night Total Fat Loss class with the fantastic-sub-five-foot-no-bullshit-allowed-no-excuses-trainer named George. He is a like a muscle bound pit bull . . . from Romania. He was wearing a tank top instead of a t-shirt last week and M and I couldn't believe how stacked he was! M heard he was a former Olympic gymnast (Doha the Branson, Missouri, of the Gulf - where former Olympians go to retire . . . ) George also commands the room with his voice. We had already started at various stations around the room when an Arab guy poked his head in and asked to join the class. George shot a quick look at the Arab and barked "Yes, go, check in, and when you come back 20 push ups!" Like I mentioned before, George doesn't mess around. So why in the heck we thought it was a good idea to take his class the night before our long run is beyond me.

I have to stop this story here to add some personal background. In 2008 I ran 7 half marathons and 2 marathons. That was while I was living in Seoul, South Korea, with one race being in Hong Kong. In Seoul there is the most amazing support system of fellow crazy runners and plenty of races in Seoul and all over Korea to enjoy. I was in heaven to say the least. I was single, working, traveling, running, and racing a lot. In fact, there was one month when I ran two half marathons. A friend jokingly asked, "Why didn't you just run one marathon and get it over with?" I went to races out of town by bus or train. I went with some great friends and also alone. I went to the Cherwon DMZ Half Marathon alone and spent the whole day speaking Korean. I will never forget that experience of running past South Korea DMZ guard towers with soldiers standing up on top and of running through villages and having Korean ajummas waving at me and cheering me on while smiling. I loved traveling throughout Korea and running. However, simply put, I was addicted and wanted to spend all my free time either preparing or actually competing. I wasn't great at it, but I had some amazing life changing races. Training and racing became me. I was a bona fide finisher's medal hording, race t-shirt collecting, early weekend morning training, monthly racing "marathoner" while in Korea.

Now that we live in Qatar things have changed. I honestly thought the only obstacle to maintaining my previous running and racing lifestyle would be the weather, but I was wrong. There is a small group of people who meet each weekend to run along The Corniche, but M and I stopped going last fall because we hated getting up early to meet strangers for a run along a brick (ouch!) path. Perhaps equally upsetting is the fact that there are practically no races in Qatar. I hear about some sort of "Women's Mini-marathon" or something like that. What the heck is a "mini-marathon"? Call it what it is - a 5k fun run/walk! I didn't run that race. It made me angry just thinking about it. However, M and I found a proper half marathon in the UAE for a nice weekend in February. We had a great time, but with less intense training I felt like it was just a training run rather than a race.

I miss racing like I used to do in Seoul. I miss feeling like I am good at running. I miss being known as "a runner" or better yet, "a marathoner" to others, but mostly to myself. I miss training hard and feeling good even though it kind of kills my social life. And I've let my husband (a marathoner and triathlete as well) know this in more than a few conversations since we moved here. I just hope we can visit Seoul and run a race there so he can experience it all.

So we recommitted ourselves to training. We've run a little more in the heat than was probably wise, and decided that we just can't change the weather. However, we can get up earlier when it isn't so darn hot. We decided this before George's Total Fat Loss class last week. We had been getting up at 5:00AM to run, but by the time we got out the door it was 5:20AM and the sun was glaring down on us.

Therefore, last Thursday night I set the alarm for 4:00AM. We would run 7 miles - the most we'd run since our February half marathon. For a half marathon we should run at least one 12 mile run about two weeks before the race. We've got time, but not much considering we've only ran 5-6 miles each time we've ran since our last half marathon and we skipped two weekends in a row. As soon as the alarm went off at 4:00AM I jumped up excited and ready to run. The cats were confused and looked a little perturbed. I know Frankie said to Sophia, "Hey, isn't it our job to wake them up?!" M wasn't trilled but I found a way to get him out of bed. I have to bluff and pretend like I'm going to run on the mean streets of Doha alone and then he's up!

Just for the record it was a nice cool 93F at 4:00AM on that Friday, June 25th. I was immediately in love with the idea of getting up every weekend in Doha at 4:00AM. I cannot tell you how incredibly refreshing it was to run at that time in that cool of weather. Right now it is a hot 95F but the "realfeel" temperature is 100F. In the past few weeks the "realfeel" temperature got up near 120F. What does that feel like? Basically, imagine putting your body into an oven, or turning a thousand hot hair dryers onto your body.

Until Next Time,

WW

Photo credit: Seoul Flyer's Running Club President, Jae Kim and me.

BeautyFULL

Well, we finally did it. We joined a fitness center in Doha. We chose Aspire Fitness which has a whole slew of programs. The facilities are where they held the 2006 Asian Games too.

With so many different buildings and equipment they are capable of doing such things as the Academy Sports Program which trains young talented athletes from all over the world. That program is all encompassing with academic classes, housing, cafeterias, and training for the athletes.

In addition to grooming Qatar's national sports teams Aspire also has fitness memberships for all. Well, maybe all...as Aspire serves their own first and others later if there is space. In fact, on the Aspire website you will see this:

"If space is limited for any program, registration priorities shall be 1) Qatari, 2) non-Qatari born in Qatar, 3) residents of Qatar of any nationality, 4) non-residents of Qatar."

Well, thank goodness Qataris don't seem to like exercise (see last week's post about The New York Time's article) or we might not get to join a gym! After looking at their memberships online we decided the location close to home, high quality facilities, and membership fees were all good. Interestingly enough their system is the opposite of an American fitness center. Here we pay a flat rate for the use of classes only. Joining the gym (weigh lifting and machines) and swimming pool are considered add on memberships. Also, memberships begin only on day 1 of the month and end on the last day of the month. In addition, as a new member you are only allowed to join for one month. After that, you can join for only 3 months or 9 months.

Here is what we paid and what we are getting:

• 1 month Family Membership* (It is good to be married! 2 of 1 deals abound!) 350 QR (approx. $96 USD)
• 1 month Men's Gym 200 QR (approx. $54 USD)

* We can go to any classes for this membership fee. Some of the men's classes are open to both men and women. However, only women can go to the women's classes. In fact, the two are separated by about a half mile. We did not join the indoor swimming pool because it is only opened for us from 7PM - 8PM.

I saw the May Women's Fitness Class Schedule online and decided that after three whole days of not using our May 1st - May 31st membership that we'd better get to it! My experience was surreal. It was the first time in Qatar that I truly felt at ease. I wore my typical black spandex capri running pants and a form fitting synthetic work out shirt - but nobody stared at me. I saw all around me a variety of colors - of clothing and skin. Boy did I see skin! In fact, cell phones are not allowed inside the women's fitness center. Not only did we have to check phones at the door but we had to walk through metal detectors and face the possibility of being wanded while our bags were searched. I guess the security lady did think I was a threat because I was motioned to just walk on by without search.

I saw all sorts of women there - Westerners, Indians, Filipinos, Arabs from other GCC and Qataris. Almost all Arabs went into the facilities completely cloaked in black draping abayas, but entered the class in spandex/tight fitting leggings and cleavage bearing tank tops of all colors. Glorious colors! The desert and all the black abayas leave us with no colors at all in Qatar.

I originally lined up to attend the Body Shape class, but the line extended around the classroom. I wasn't going to get in and an Aspire Fitness Center woman told me just that. She told me to go to another studio where I could attend Pilates. Now, I'm much more of a strength, tone, run, run, and run some more kind of gal so I wasn't too keen on going to Pilates. I'm glad I did though. I got to hear the most lovely accent from a gracefully aging expert Pilates instructor and a great story to boot!

Our tiny, weathered and toned 50-something instructor walked in to class apologizing that the class was already so full. She explained that we would be doing some "controlled" movements to straighten our cores. In addition to her (Russian? Polish?) accent I cannot forget the word she kept using the entire hour: Beautiful!

The Pilates instructor would move around the room saying "for Fitness women you can do this like this" which was followed by her demonstrating a more advanced movement. After that, she would say, "for all you beautiful ladies you can do it like this," after which she would do a much easier movement.

I kept wondering 'who is she talking to? Beautiful ladies? Is she just trying to patronize the local Qatari women in the class, or bow to them?'

Only later did I find out to whom she was referring in class. After the one hour of Pilates I looked around and saw a bulletin board. On the bulletin board I saw it! Aspire Fitness has a program call BeautyFULL for overweight or obese women. Mystery solved! After I told my husband this story (he wasn't there because we were gender segregated!) he said, "BootyFULL?"

Until Next Time,

WW

Photo credits:

http://www.aspire.qa/

http://www.skyscrapercity.com/

http://www.google.com/

http://www.answers.com/

IAAF World Indoor Track & Field Championship - in Doha!

Well, here I am again on vacation from teaching and looking at this blog again. I need to be more consistent with my posting . . . . .

In March M and I went to the IAAF World Indoor Track & Field Championships in Doha, just 3/4 of a mile from our house. It was exciting!

There were athletes from a lot of countries. In fact, we saw some Ethiopian professional runners (Meseret Defar, Sentayehu Ejigu Kalkidan Gezhegn) who had an amazing cheering section from local Ethiopians and/or Ethiopians who had made the trip to Doha. One of the most amazing races was the women's 3K race. One runner actually fell down near the middle of the 1500K race, but managed to get back up and finish first! That runner was Ethiopian runner Kalkidan Gezhegn.



We also saw American male heptatlon athletes Bryan Clay and Trey Hardee, who won the gold and silver medals for the event. We were very excited to see American hurdler Lolo Jones race and defend her title in the 60meter hurdles.




It was an exciting day and seeing so many different people cheering on their own was fun. I hope we get to see more world class events like this in the future. In fact, in May Doha will host another IAAF track and field event - outdoors through the IAAF's Diamond League.


We left thinking that we needed to run more, but after the RAK 1/2 Marathon in February we've been taking it easy....maybe too easy. It is time to run again!

Until next time,

WW