Le Geek, C'est Chic

In anticipation of the day when I own an iPod shuffle, I've created a playlist of pop and rock music, between 1:30 and 2:40 minutes long, that I can use for running. The idea is that I'll run for a minute at the beginning of each song and then walk for the rest of it.

Now it needs to be said that, at the moment, I'm still sticking to my run 30 seconds/walk a minute and half schedule, in an attempt to be moderate as I return to this practice. And, needless to say, I DO NOT currently own the iPod shuffle (although I have one on order at Amazon with a projected delivery of late March).

The current list has 3 hours of material in it, which is more than enough to keep me from getting bored in my current training regime. Later, as my training improves, I can widen my selection of tunes to include those that are, say, up to 3:30 minutes long (and increase the length of my 'run' segment). I have enough of those to get me through an entire marathon.

But here's the best part. First I created a Smart Playlist to fit the criteria mentioned above (no jazz, world music, classical, etc.). Then I randomized the list order and created a regular playlist from it. Then at the beginning I placed "Gonna Fly Now" (the original Rocky theme), which is almost four and a half minutes, and at the end I placed "Eye of the Tiger," which clocks in at four minutes. So the beauty of the deal is, when I get the mythical shuffle, I can start at the beginning and get a dose of inspiration ~ then switch to shuffle mode for the meat of the workout ~ then, when I'm finishing up my run, I can switch back to regular play and quickly navigate to the last track for a wow finish.

Heh. Bookended by corny Rocky tracks.

Can't wait.