NWR: Why I Shouldn't Be Photographed Running

NWR = Non Wedding Related. Aka, something that doesn't take up much of my time these days...

I mentioned in my last post that I was about to run a half marathon. Well, I did, and I survived. Barely. My Nike Plus pooped out on me about half way through, and my knees followed suit shortly thereafter.

If you are not yet familiar with the genius that is Nike Plus, let me enlighten you. It consists of two little doo-hickeys. One you stick on the bottom of your iPod, the other you stick in a little compartment in your Nike Plus compatible Nikes. There's a bit of a brand name monopoly here, but this is one instance where I overlook it!

The two doo-hickeys talk to each other, and send the info to your iPod screen. It tells you how long you've been running, how fast (or slow...) you are running, and how far you have run. I think of it as an outdoor treadmill, and I LOVE it. It isn't super duper accurate for distance/speed, but it is great to use to pace yourself.

So when it had a personality crisis in the middle of my race, I was left without a real way to pace myself. I think I started running too fast, and it just wrecked my whole body. My back is still killing me!

This puts a damper on my plan to fit in one more half marathon before the wedding! See how I took this from a NWR post all the way right back to wedding? I am skilled like that.

Anyhow, I really just wanted to share with all of you a secret shame: I look horrible running. This is a fact I may never have known apart from the fact that they have frickin photographers at races. Why, I know not. I could have gone my whole life, happily, uglily (is that a word?) running along, with the only clue to my freakishness being the odd random look or double take I get as I cross another runners path.

But, alas, for some reason, someone decided that runners should be photographed mid-race. Probably people who look like this when they run:
The grace, the smile, the beautiful surroundings!

Or this:
The power, the determination, the muscles!

Even from my own most recent race, cute runners abound:




Now, me? I now have photographic evidence from 2.5 half marathons that I tend to look:

Confused:




Scornful:




And anything but happy:


(even at the finish line)


See? I should not be photographed running.

Which means there will not be any pictures like these at our wedding. Even though they are totally cool:





Oh, yes, I did bring it right back to the wedding yet again. It's an illness, people. You'd better run!