About tunes . . .
I'm not gonna lie: if it weren't for the mp3, I wouldn't do the marathon.
I get bored while running; even though the scenery changes, it can get pretty monotonous. Music makes the difference. I needs my tunes in order to get by.
Sure, the Walkman got people through the 80's and 90's, but it also added enough weight and bulk to be thoroughly annoying while running (not to mention being limited to one cassette/CD). Maybe that's why I never really ran more than six miles. But with the mp3 player, you have a lightweight, portable way to hold a ton of music.
But sometimes, not enough.
When I started prepping for the half-marathon last year, through the early months of my training this year, I used a cheap Sansa player a couple of years old. It worked well, but I ran into a couple of problems:
1) Wearing it on the strap around my forearm was messing with my elbow. There was a two-week period where I was experiencing pretty bad pain. I couldn't figure it out, until I finally realized the repetition in the running motion combined with the weight was causing the problem.
2) As I started on the longer runs, this older player was limited in the number of songs it could hold. It had about 40 songs which lasted about two hours. Since the marathon is about double that
So I used these negatives as excuses reasons to get the last generation iPod shuffle. It holds plenty of songs, has a clip that attaches to my pocket/waistband, and is so light that there are times I feel like it's not even there (then, I remember I'm still listening to music, so it is obviously there). It was well worth the investment to upgrade.
When it comes to the tunes, I have a diversified playlist. A lot of rock, some rap, and a couple of tunes of my girls' to inspire me late in the race. Here's a sampling, but don't judge me:
Beautiful Day by U2 Bittersweet Symphony by The Verve This Is Why I'm Hot (Rock Mix) by Mims featuring Purple Popcorn Control by Mute Math Sex On Fire by Kings of Leon Epic by Faith No More Pour Some Sugar On Me by Def Leppard It's Not My Time by 3 Doors Down Take Back the City by Snow Patrol Ladies and Gentlemen by Saliva Won't Get Fooled Again by The Who Lose Yourself by Eminem Pretty Vegas by INXS Do You Want To by Franz Ferdinand Paradise City by Guns N' Roses Numb/Encore by Jay-Z & Linkin Park Icky Thump by The White Stripes All My Life by Foo Fighters Touch the Sky by Kanye West E-Pro by Beck Song 2 by Blur The Pretender by Foo Fighters Misery Business by Paramore Jump Around by House Of Pain
What do I need to add by Sunday?