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Why I Run

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Happy National Running Day!  Since I’m a rule follower, here’s my contribution to National Running Day’s “I run…” campaign.

I run…

Because it lets me eat like this.

Because all you need is a pair of sneakers (and a GPS watch, and an ipod shuffle, and Body Glide, and a sweatband, and a wicking shirt, and a wicking hat)

Because evolution demands it.

Because I seem like the calm one when standing with a group of anxious runners before the start of a race.

Because I no longer feel safe on yoga retreats.

Because from 2004-2009 I had one pair of pants that I wore every day.  (and in 2008, I didn’t really even button them all the way)

Because I really really really really really love ice cream.  

Because of the race photos:

Because I’ve got great friends to run with, and they have no choice but to listen to everything I say the entire time.  

Because I can obsess over my race times being posted on the internet. 

Because if you google “Rob Pollak Running,” this comes up in the image search: 

But also this (Another Pollak who’s running … for office!  Get it?  Zing.  LOL!)

Because it gives me something to blog about.

Have a great national running day everybody!  Vote Pollak!

Help me be less Annoying

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As I was waiting in line at the store today, I realized that I am incapable of standing in a line and not looking annoyed.  Is there any way to stand without looking incredibly annoyed?  No matter what I did, it came out like this:

I tried so many different ways of trying to look like there was no place I would rather be than in that line.  Here’s what I tried.

– Arms folded across my chest.

– One hand in pocket, one casually resting on the register table.

– Inching closer to the person in front of me and coughing quietly.

– Shifting my weight back and forth from one foot to the other while sighing loudly.

– Muttering, “I mean, seriously?  How long have we been here?  Hellooooo?”

None of these casual stances gave off the vibe I desired.  Maybe I just have one of those faces that always looks annoyed.  Please let me know if you have any solutions for ways to stand casually without looking annoyed.  I struggle with this generally, but it’s especially hard whenever I am waiting in a line because it sure seems like people intentionally take fucking forever just to piss me off.   Am I right?  Who’s with me?

See below for some pictures of my face so you can judge for yourselves.  

This is my happy face (I probably had just eaten a shitload of ice cream)

Here’s me politely asking Anne to give me back my ipad immediately.

 

Here’s me explicitly trying to smile instead of doing an annoyed face.

Food Diary (a.k.a. I’m a Fat F*&K)

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According to science, I am somewhere between -3 and 26 lbs overweight.  Since no one without a phd in literature can understand the instructions for determining “frame size,” I am considering myself a medium frame.  I also have miniature wrists and the smallest neck of any adult man.  Perhaps my frame may even be small.  

I exercise a lot.  So here I am, finally admitting that the only reason I am not yet gracing the cover of men’s health magazine is related to my diet.  

I hope you’re ready internet, because I’m considering keeping a running food diary on my tumblr to hold myself accountable.  To see if this is even possible, here’s my recreation of everything I have eaten since 6 am on Thursday morning.

Thursday (Pretty sure this was the healthiest day)

Breakfast:

20 oz Iced coffee (Thanks Mayor Bloomberg!)

6 oz oatmeal from Whole Foods

Workout:

4 mile run on treadmill.  (Sweat rating 3.5 towels)

Lunch:

Salad with blackened chicken, whole wheat pita, rice, avocado, cucumber, sesame ginger dressing.  

Beverage – Water

Dinner:

Chipotle Burrito Bowl (Picture is representative, but not accurate).  Brown rice, black beans, Barbacoa (no clue what this is), hot salsa, corn salsa, a little cheese.  (No guac or sour cream)

Beverage – water

Dessert:  
Entire pint of this:

 

Friday:  

Breakfast:

20 oz iced coffee

Corn muffin from a food cart parked outside my apartment

Snack:

Two apple sauces – single serve size, not whole jars

Workout:  One hour Vinyassa Yoga (image below), Jog 1.1 miles.  (Sweat Rating:  3 towels)

Lunch:  

Whole Foods Hot bar (Total Weight 1.29 lbs).  Items included:  Brown rice, Chicken Curry, Four pieces of Naan, One potato Samosa, Mexican Rice

Drink – Sparkling Mandarin Water

Dinner:

I cooked this.  I added an extra half pound of the skirt steak because two of us were eating.  Then I ate approximately one pound of skirt steak.  

I also ate 170 blue corn chips with guacamole.  

Beverage:  Mandarin Orange Seltzer

Dessert:

Saturday:

Breakfast – onion bagel with lo-fat cream cheese from Zuckers

20 oz Iced Coffee.

Lunch:

Chicken Selects Meal from McDonalds (5 pc) (20 oz Coke) (Medium Fries)

Snack:

Leftover dinner from last night (Serving Size – Medium)

20 more chips with guac

Workout:

3ish Mile Run.  Outdoors.  Sweated my balloons off.

And that’s where I’m at.  I think that I’m eating pretty healthily, so if anyone notices any issues or has suggestions for ways that I can cut down on unnecessary calories, I would love to hear them.