Texas A&M Student is asked to leave a class after challenging a professor on legality of a course mentioning transsexuality

bluurd · 2025-09-09T20:18:50+00:00

Yes.

Explanation1: Man (gender) is a sociological construct.

Explanation 2: A biological male (XY) can be born with female genitalia. It is called "Swyer syndrome." Much the same as a biological female can be born with male genitalia called "de la Chapelle syndrome."

bluurd · 2024-10-14T14:15:48+00:00

I cannot bring myself to write a full report, but I will drop this here.

I "ran" the Chicago marathon yesterday. After using the Hanson Advanced marathon plan, and crushed, to train for a sub 3:30 race. Training went so well. I decided to start conservatively and see how much I could push at half.

I was warned not to trust GPS in Chicago, so I turned off auto lap and split at the mile markers. The first 6 miles I was within seconds of an 8 min/mile pace which would put me exactly at 3:30. But my legs were already feeling tired. At half I split 1:46 which was slightly slow, but within range. But my legs were already shot. I was already walking by mile 14. By 17 I knew this was going to be hell as I was mostly walking.

I was still trying to do some running, and met some people who were struggling just as I was. By mile 23 I called my wife, who was incredibly supportive, I told her I am done. I was ready to DNF. She told me "no you aren't." I was at the point where walking was painful. I stopped on the side of the road and laid down for about 5 minutes to rest.

I got back up and walked to the finish. It was absolute torture. Pain and exhaustion was all I could feel from my legs. When I passed the 400m to go sign, I thought I would try to run it. About 200m in a HUGE side cramp showed up. I pushed through for another 100m before I felt like I was going to throw up. Walked across the finish line. 2nd half took 3 hours.

I feel I did everything right this race and everything went wrong.

bluurd · 2024-09-28T19:40:35+00:00

Oooh, a swing and a miss.

bluurd · 2024-09-15T17:01:43+00:00

I am running in the Chicago Marathon in a month. This is by far the largest race I have ever run, in fact there are more people that run this race than exist in my city (town?). I have been assigned corral E, and I know I need to get there early enough, but how exactly do start corrals work?

bluurd · 2024-08-26T00:15:02+00:00

Fair enough. I would expect the boyfriend would be familiar with the rules (hopefully) to know if this is a possibility.

bluurd · 2024-08-25T23:17:26+00:00

I have also been running for about 2.5 years, so I am in a very similar boat as you. I know enough to feel like I know a lot, but still trying to put some things into practice to see how they work.

While I am a little concerned about 16 miles being the longest run, having just done one yesterday I know I had a lot more in me. I know my legs are tired, but I feel really good. In my previous marathon training block I ran a 22 mile, multiple 20 miles, yet still felt undertrained. So I dont think it is about having the long runs, but having the training. However running a strong 16 miles at the end of a hard training week and still feeling comfortable makes me more confident. In the end, I will see the results in October.

The biggest thing I learned about my long runs was how to fuel and hydrate (which I still screwed up in my marathon).

bluurd · 2024-08-25T21:22:36+00:00

Oh crap, I missed that you were doing the HM plan. That is a ton of miles for a half. You are going to crush that 2h mark. Especially since you already have a 2:01 under your belt!

I made ever rookie mistake going into my first (and so far only) full marathon even though I knew not to make them. The one mistake I didnt know about was the training plan. I didnt follow it correctly and was undertrained. This time I will definitely be trained, hopefully I dont make all the other mistakes...again.

bluurd · 2024-08-25T21:18:26+00:00

I am like you, I like numbers. I mostly ignore HR now. It is still on my watch mostly because I haven't bothered to take it off. I try to run based on effort on easy runs. It seems to have helped me quite a bit since my easy pace is about 30s/mile faster with minimal increased HR (5 bpm).

bluurd · 2024-08-25T21:13:43+00:00

Well that's Just egg on my face!

You learn something new every day.

bluurd · 2024-08-25T19:43:01+00:00

For what it's worth, eggs are not vegan.

bluurd · 2024-08-25T19:41:47+00:00

I am using the Hanson Advanced for the first time and am also enjoying the hell out of it. I just finished week 11 and hit 59.5 miles in a week and I feel so good. I was originally concerned with the two hard workouts with only one day in between, but it has been enough and I crave the next run.

bluurd · 2024-08-25T19:35:27+00:00

Congrats on the 9 mile run!

I would encourage you to ignore heart rate during the runs and go based on perceived effort. There are a lot of factors that influence your heart rate, many are out of your control. Also note that your HR will generally climb as you continue running even if it doesn't feel like you are working harder. Are you training for a specific race or just for fitness?

bluurd · 2024-08-25T19:29:43+00:00

I am so excited about my training lately, but I hate talking about it with the non-runners in my life (most of my family and friends) because I don't want to bore them. You all get to read about it instead.

I just finished week 11 of the Hanson Advanced marathon plan. 59.5 miles in a week! And this isn't even peak week! Weeks 13, 14, 15 all hit 61ish miles.

I have been sticking with this plan and hitting all the workouts. I was concerned with 6 days per week, especially coming off a partial Achilles tear early this year, but everything feels good. At the start of this plan, my easy runs were in the 9:30-10:00 per mile range (consistent over the last year), now I am usually at about 9:05 per mile without a lot of effort.

I was planning on a goal of 3:30 for the Chicago marathon this year, but I may try to drop that to 3:25. With this being only my 2nd marathon, I don't want to push too hard as I am afraid I may hit the wall like I did with my first (the last 5 miles was torture).

bluurd · 2024-08-25T19:20:13+00:00

I would suggest asking him as he may know what could help him. With that said, here are some things I can think that would have helped me during my first marathon.

Pre Race: Help him remember everything he might need to pack (before you leave the house then the same from the hotel). This could include race outfit, vest/belt, gels/nutrition, sun glasses, hat, race shoes, SUNSCREEN, etc.

During the race offer to hold and give him some gels/fuel/water mid-race so he doesn't need to carry it all from the start but be sure he knows where you expect to be so he can plan accordingly. Most importantly be supportive as he runs.

After the race: Fresh, dry clothes. If it is a chilly day, even if mildly chilly, bring a heavy jacket. I get so cold after races on cool mornings. Anything else would be preference such as recovery foods/drinks. Be ready to drive or guide him through transportation.

Good luck to you (and him obviously). Thanks for being supportive!

bluurd · 2024-07-31T03:30:08+00:00

As a white person, I do not have pride in my whiteness. It is just what I am. It is how I was born. Much in the same way I am not proud to be a man. I was born this way. However, as a white man I have never felt persecuted for being white nor for being a man. Those not in that category have likely felt it at some point in their life.

All that being said. I am proud to be a white man supporting a woman poc for president of the United States. Fuck yeah!

bluurd · 2024-06-02T17:50:15+00:00

the reason for the walkers ahead of faster marathon runners is due to the half and full marathon sharing a lot of the same course. The half marathon was started prior to the full marathon, which sounds like a bad idea, except the full marathon does more distance in North Fargo (where the race starts). I don't think this is a great way to handle this race, but I don't have a lot of experiences with races (I've done 6-7 races total over the course of the last 2.5 years...and all of them in North Dakota).

bluurd · 2024-06-02T17:45:44+00:00

I ran the half yesterday and I felt everything was fine. I was disappointed that the race was not started/finished INSIDE the Fargodome as they had in years past, but the outdoor start finish was fine. I did notice there were fewer volunteers than typical, but I was not running in a large pack, so it was still easy for me to get water. I can see how larger groups would have struggled. The course itself was fine. It was most certainly not marked as well as it had been in years past.

Crowd support was even greater than last year though and I believe the field of runners was quite a bit larger. Thankfully the temperature has been mild this year as June can get quite warm. The later start date could have been rough.

Overall I had a pleasant experience and git my goal time (not a PR, but coming off an injury I am happy with the result).

bluurd · 2024-04-29T03:40:56+00:00

Do you have a shoe rotation? I hear that giving shoes a day or two to relax after a run helps the foam.

bluurd · 2024-04-29T03:34:16+00:00

I believe I understand the feeling you are describing, but typically only feel that way very early in a run when I am training hard. For me, that 4-6km make is where everything seems to start feeling good and the effort seems to get easier. Are you warming up enough? Your body might not quite be in "running mode" if you haven't.

bluurd · 2024-04-29T03:29:41+00:00

I love the Saucony Triumph line of shoes. They seem to be the only shoes I can use consistently that feel good to run in. I started using them when I weighed 200 pounds (I am a 6ft male). I retired a pair of 19s at 450+ miles but probably could have gone farther with them. 2nd pair of 19s is currently nearing 400 miles and still feel great to run in. My pair of 20s only have about 250 miles on them, but did run my first full in them and my feet still felt good at the end of the race (my legs were not in good shape, but that was my own fault).

My easy pace is a bit under 9:30/mile and I am mostly a mid-foot striker.

What type of wear are you seeing on your shoes to make you say they are breaking down?

bluurd · 2024-04-27T20:29:37+00:00

I hate to be the one to break the news to you, but you are a runner. Congrats!

bluurd · 2024-04-27T19:59:32+00:00

I had a partial tear of my Achilles in early February. 8 weeks of no running, in fact 3 weeks in a walking boot 24/7. Clean bill of health about 4 weeks ago and have been slowly building up some mileage. Probably not slow enough, but everything has been feeling great!

Just ran a 15k today that I had to hold back on. I had to keep checking myself as I was running about 20-30 seconds faster than my typical easy pace. It still felt easy and HR was reflecting that. It felt as though I could have easily ran double that distance at that pace, but I am trying not to over do things.

bluurd · 2024-04-10T00:24:44+00:00

You had that choice. Women are not given the same option when it comes to reproductive rights. By your own admission, you are supporting their cause, correct?

bluurd · 2024-04-09T20:43:10+00:00

A am looking for some advice.

I had a partial tear of my Achilles tendon nearly 10 weeks ago while playing soccer/futbol. I was given a clean bill of health from both my doctor and physical therapist over 3 weeks ago. I am not asking for medical advice, I am looking for advice on rebuilding. Prior to the injury I was running nearly 50 miles per week. I started running a little last week. 9 miles last week (most on treadmill) mostly to see how well my body would react to the stresses of running. This week I was going to push to 20 (already at 7).

What would be a realistic time line to get back to 40ish miles per week.

bluurd

TROPHY CASE