Taking Pointers from Dean Karnazes

Either Dean Karnazes is having more of an effect on me than I expected or gas prices are really getting to me.  Eh, ok.  Most likely both.  Dean just gave me a way to avoid gas and I jumped at it.

Last night I got home from work and knew I had to do two things.  I had to run because smart me washed all my running clothes earlier and they had to dry during the day and I had to go to the grocery store before dinner.  It was about 6:30pm.  Do I go run now?  I'd have to wait until after I got back, showered, and drove to the grocery store to eat though - that'd probably be after 8pm.  Or do I go to the grocery store now and sacrifice the run?  Oh, HELL no!  I grabbed my gear and got dressed.

Then it hit me - why not run to the store?  I checked the distance and wouldn't you know, one store is 0.8 miles away, the other is 1.82 miles away.  I grabbed my hydration pack backpack and was off. 

I ran 1.82 miles to the new Stop & Shop and made it there in 11:36 (6:22 pace).  I looked around at food and ironically decided I was going to eat some scallops I had at home.  But I did pick up some shredded cheese for my roommate, so the trip wasn't a complete loss.  I paid, put the cheese in my backpack, and headed back.  I was so happy with my time out to the store that I let myself take it slow on the way back and made it in 13:34 (7:27 pace).

In reading Dean's book 50/50, he talks about picking a distance.  Anywhere within that distance from the house, he runs to instead of drives.  He has multiple backpacks to accomodate different trips (the bank, the grocery store, etc.).  With gas jumping 5-10 cents almost every other day over here, I'm starting to think Dean has a pretty good system going!


P.S.  I'm getting more and more used to running with the hydration pack.  However, I haven't run with water in it yet (I'll try that on Sunday's long run).  I'm optimistic that the backpack will be a great way to keep hydrated on long runs since I need to drink so much every hour. 

Questions

1.  Do you walk, run, or bike to do any of your errands on a regular basis?
I'll start with the grocery store (0.8 or 1.76 miles away) and work my way up to general stores and the gym (~6 miles away).  Once the weather gets better I can bike too.

2.  What are your gas prices up to?  
The cheapest gas in CT is $3.45 (30 miles away).  Around me, it's $3.60+.

3.  Have you made any changes to your daily life to try and cut down on driving?
I carpool to work and schedule my general shopping for days I plan on going to the gym because the shops are all near the gym.


Stay fit.  Stay healthy.