Running & Drawing with the Nike+ App

| Melissa @ Nourished & Vibrant

The solution to running route boredom has presented itself to me in the shape of a stripper sliding down Sunset Blvd..

stripper Nike+
Picture: @clairewyckoff

Have you heard the buzz about the woman who uses her love of all things funny and phallic to run across San Francisco?

Claire Wyckoff uses the Nike+ running app to draw aerial doodles of Atari Space Invaders, corgis and even penises. She then posts her masterpieces to her Tumblr along with hilarious captions.

space invader
Picture: @clairewyckoff

My personal favorite? Slimer from Ghostbusters spanning the East side of Golden Gate Park.

slimer running app
Picture: @clairewyckoff

Without a little creativity, trying to get mid-long runs in around a city can be a challenge. Personally, I can only run around Lake Merritt so many times before wanting to give everything up and stop at The Boat House for drinks instead. 

Kudos to this running pioneer who probably just inspired a whole lot of people (including myself) to make their runs a little more fun. Maybe our friends will actually look forward to seeing our 10-milers in their Facebook and Twitter feeds if they are shaped like a giant game of PacMan? 

All I know is that I’ve never been so excited to try out a new running route this week. 

30 Day Burpee Challenge

| Melissa @ Nourished & Vibrant

On Monday, I began a 30 Day Burpee Challenge. This sadistic self-dare will force me to perform an increasing number of burpees each day over the course of one month, with the goal of completing 100 on the final day (B-Day). I did the math, and my total burpee count over 30 days will be 1300. (*Insert disgusted grunt here.*)

I just finished Day 3, and so far so good. However, my daily quota will quickly escalate, and I anticipate many, many sore days this month. (No pain, no gain, right?)

Don’t know what a burpee is? Besides being the exercise that everyone loves to hate, it’s an effective bodyweight exercise that works your abs, arms and legs. There are a few variations, but the version I’m most familiar with is as follows:

1. Start in standing position, and crouch down into a squat, with your hands touching the ground.

2. Kick your feet back into a plank position.

3. Pull your feet back into a squat, and jump straight up into the air as high as you can.

4. Repeat. Repeat. Repeat.

I’ll be sure to give updates on my progress, and I encourage you to challenge yourself too! Misery loves company!!!

Wish me luck!