March Recap

APRIL IS *almost* HERE! Can I get a hallelujah?

It’s time for another month-end recap. As a side note, I just realized that these little recaps are kind of similar to the monthly updates that moms do for their kids. At 31 years and 7 months, here are some things that I like, things that I dislike and things that I did this month. Enjoy! Haha.

Recap: March 2017

Workouts: March was full of workouts! As I listed these out, I was surprised that it was so many. As a comparison, last year during March I did one workout. One! I am pleasantly surprised that I still seem to have some motivation and energy this year. Usually tax season sucks the life those things right out of me.

1.5 mi. WU, 4 X 800 (3:05, 3:06, 3:01, 3:01), 4 X 400 (1:28, 1:28, 1:29, 1:26), 2 X 200 (0:39, 0:39), 1 mi. CD

Easy run w/ 10 X 1:00 pickups (8 miles @ 7:41 avg.)

2 mi. WU, 10 mi. brisk pace run (7:01 avg.)

2 mi. WU, 3 mi. tempo (6:38, 6:32, 6:30), 1 mi. recovery, 4 X 400 (1:36, 1:35, 1:37, 1:36), 2 mi. CD

22 mile long run

1 mi. WU, 3 X 3 mi. (6:59, 6:48, 6:55), (6:54, 6:48, 6:39), (6:54, 7:17, 7:31), 1 mi. CD

Moderate pace run w/ last 3 up-tempo (6:42, 6:38, 6:40)

23 mile long run (broken up into two runs)

1 mi. WU, 3 miles (6:27, 6:20, 6:18), 2 miles (6:16, 6:10), 1 mile (6:09), 1 mi. CD

Favorite workout: I really enjoyed the brisk pace run this month. It was challenging, but doable and was definitely a confidence boosting workout.

Races: I did two races in March. I think I’ve done two races each month so far this year and I’m still going strong on the 1 half marathon per month thing. I’ve got my April one planned, but after that I’m going to need to get to work on the schedule. I ran the Seaside School Half Marathon and the Spring Fever Chase 10K in March.

Favorite Race: My favorite race this month was, hands down, Spring Fever!

Paces: Ranged from 6:09 to 10:27. I guess it’s possible that I ran at least one mile faster than 6:09 during Spring Fever, but since I ran without my watch … we will never really know. I’ll have to admit that even though I didn’t have my own data to analyze after the race, I was able to kind of piece together what I did based on other runner’s splits on Strava. I was behind several people through mile 3 that averaged 6:15 for the first three miles and then I averaged 6:15 overall, so I know that I picked it up the second half. I finally got a nice little negative split! Woo hoo!

My 10:27 mile was with Brooks (our dog). We have been running a mile and a half or so a few times a week. Our new yard isn’t quite as conducive to fetching (his absolute favorite method of play), so we have added a few short runs. He could definitely run a faster pace if there weren’t so many distractions. All of his doggie friends leave him lots of pee-mail to check each morning.

We were getting some sun in the picture above after a quick run. As it turns out, laying out isn’t our favorite. We only lasted about 10 minutes. I like the idea of laying out, but actually doing it isn’t fun (in my opinion).

Total miles: 323. Gotta love ultra marathon training!

Distances: Ranged from 3 miles to 23 miles. I took a rest day or two as well, so technically I guess the lowest distance could be zero and the 23 miler got broken up into two runs, so the highest consecutive distance was 22. Rebecca and Jessica came to the house to run the morning of the 23 and neither of them were doing more than 10 – 13 miles (but only because Rebecca was tapering for her 50K and Jessica is growing a human … otherwise, I know they would’ve totally joined me). I was planning to do the first part with them and then continue on by myself, but of course that didn’t happen.

I decided that breakfast and coffee with friends > running by myself. Call me crazy (or dedicated … I like that better), but I did get those other 10 in a little later in the day when Daniel was home to go with me. I told him that it felt like a birthday run. Birthday run days are the only days that I can recall doing double-digit runs twice in a day.

Strength work: I have been doing a decent job of stretching (what?!) and doing core after each run. I also have some 5 lb. weights that I use to do a few arm exercises, but I’m not entirely sure how much that is actually doing for me. It’s better that nothing I reckon.

Current book: I promise to read a book next month!

Current music: Daniel has got me branching out with my SiriusXM channels a little bit. He got a new car (long story) and has XM radio for the first time and so he’s been finding the good stations for us. One that we have been digging (so old school) is the 90s on 9. I’m pretty sure that when you start appreciating music of past decades more than current music, you are getting old (and I’m totally cool with that). We’ve also been listening to SiriusXM Fly which is Hip-Hop/R&B from the 90s & 00s. It is oh so fly (but also oh so uncensored … oh my).

Current craving: Time in nature. I have this odd desire to channel my inner Henry David Thoreau and experience life in the woods (translation: I just want to go camping for like a weekend or something).

Current drink: Ginger Lemonade Nuun. Y’all! This is SO GOOD. It’s my new favorite flavor, but I really like lemon-y things. As a side note, I also tried the Blackberry Citrus Vitamin enhanced Nuun flavor and did NOT like that one. I couldn’t even drink it.

Current food: Avocado. I think I am late to this party, but I am putting avocado on everything right now. SO GOOD!

Current obsession: I am loving a good top knot! Just when I thought it was impossible to get any lazier with hair preparation … I have discovered buns. It is the easiest hairstyle ever and it’s perfect for runners!

Current need: Top knots aside, I need do something with my hair. I let the lady talk me into that whole ombre thing last time I went (sometime in September) and I really am just not feeling it anymore. I don’t know that I was ever really feeling it, but whatevs. It’s just hair. I’m thinking maybe just some highlights would be nice.

Current indulgence: Shower sitting. This may sound ridiculous, but we have a little bench in our shower and if I have time, I like to take a few minutes to just sit and be. I didn’t sit down on it for the first two or three weeks that we lived there and I realized it was because I was constantly rushing around. It’s nice to take time (or make time) to relax a little bit! Plus I just love feeling the water wash over me. I like to think about my sins washing away. It’s a good way to start fresh each day!

Current bane of my existence: For whatever reason my skin has decided to become super sensitive lately. Lotions and sprays that I have used for a long time have started causing me to break out into a hive-like rash. I like vanilla and coconut scented things (basically I just want to smell like the beach) and now I just have to settle for being plain. Boo.

Current procrastination: I know that I’ve said, “I’ll do that after tax season,” in reference to lots of things recently … one of those things is taking pictures to get framed. Daniel pointed out that the frame place was about two blocks from our house and I could just drop them by there anytime … pretty sure I gave him a dirty look.

Current confession: This might get a little long-winded and I hate that I am even going to say this, but y’all, I *almost* lost it over a Facebook post last week. I made it through the entire election debacle without getting into it with anyone (heck, I didn’t even comment on anything election-related), but this post about sent me over the edge. My blood was boiling!

This person shared a video that said “women have a right to run without fear and that everyone has a right to feel safe in public” and the post itself said “these kinds of things irritate me because it perpetuates this idea that women are victims or easy targets. Almost 25 years of running solo and 10 years of riding my bike alone and I’ve been attacked by 1 dog. I’ve never been groped or chased. Don’t let the media keep you from doing what you love, […] don’t be scared of the boogeyman.”

The comments were along the lines of, “I feel sorry for anyone who messes with my wife” and “fear mongering, on many levels, is rampant.” I commented and simply said, “You should consider yourself very fortunate to have never dealt with sexual assault while running. It’s a very real thing that happens all too often and not just in the dark or in sketchy places. All runners need to be aware.”

I still just can’t shake this. It makes my livid just thinking about how ignorant people can be. Should we have the right to feel safe? Yes. Do we live in a crazy, fallen world? Yes. Should we walk around (or run in this case) with a false sense of security? NO! The comments were possibly worse that the post itself. People were basically saying that *some* women can protect themselves and would easily be able to fend off an attack. Maybe this is true, but honestly you just never know. You don’t know what could happen or how you will respond until you have someone twice your size with a gun threatening to kill you. My main thing is that I just want everyone to be aware and to have a plan (I wrote an entire post about safety tips for runners here). Please don’t think that the “media” is making a bigger deal of this than it is. The statistics speak for themselves. Be smart people!

Current quote: From Henry David Thoreau’s Walden: I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived.

Current excitement: I am excited about so many things! Did I mention that it is almost APRIL?! Only 18 more days of tax season! Plus it’s Friday. Also, I am running a marathon tomorrow! Okay, so not an official marathon, but I am going to do my longest run of the 50K training cycle (which I haven’t properly documented here) tomorrow morning. There is an actual 50K in Orange Beach that Rebecca is running and I am going to run 26 of the miles with her.

My 50K is just over a month away at this point and I am really getting excited about that. I’m really looking forward to seeing Colorado in the spring and spending some quality time in the woods (this seems to be a recurring theme). Fun fact: I ran my first marathon when I was 26 and am going to (Lord willing) do my first 31 miler when I am 31!

Your turn. Tell me something that you are excited about!

February Recap

I can’t even believe that February has come and gone. Pure craziness! It’s been a very busy, very exciting month here. Let’s talk about what’s been going on!

Recap: February 2017

Workouts: Not as many workouts this month as usual. The end of the first week of the month was a taper for Rock N Roll New Orleans and the second week was a recovery week. I also missed two workouts during the weekends that we were moving. Between work and moving I am just worn slap out. Sometimes life gets busy and training (and blogging) have to take the back seat for a little bit, but that’s totally understandable and is definitely as it should be.

2 mi. WU, 6 X 1 mile (6:11, 6:10, 6:07, 6:08, 6:05, 6:10), 1.5 mi. CD

12 mile medium long run (7:23 average)

2 mi. WU, 2 X 3 mi. ([6:42, 6:38, 6:33], [6:40, 6:34, 6:19]), 1.5 mi. CD

20 mile long run (7:50 average)

Favorite workout: I’m going to have to go with my 20 miler for this one. Rebecca and I did 20 miles last Saturday and kept it at a really respectable pace. This was my first 20 miler since July, which seems crazy! I took some time off from the long distance training (my last marathon was November of 2015) and I’m itching to get back at it …

Daniel and I are taking a trip out west in May and (of course) I found a race to do while we will be there. The trip had nothing to do with running initially, but I can’t pass up an opportunity to run on some beautiful trails and race in a state where I have never run.

More to come on that soon!

Races: I ran 2 races this month … the Rock N Roll New Orleans Half Marathon & the Joe Cain Classic 5K.

Favorite Race: Rock N Roll New Orleans will always hold a special place in my heart, but I really just LOVED Joe Cain this year! It was so fun to do an impromptu race with no pressure.

Paces: The paces ranged from 6:04 to 10:23 this month.

Distances: Distances ranged from 4 miles (on the Alter G treadmill) to 20 miles.

Total miles: 298.10 miles

Strength work: 90 minutes of “lifting” plus some miscellaneous, undocumented (gasp … appalling … I know) ab work. I was really on a roll with adding strength training to the weekly routine, but it just got to be too much. I had too much on my plate and I had to decide what to cut. Unfortunately strength training was the first to go (I think blogging was a close second).

Current book: Uh … I think I may have read one page of a book (aside from my morning devotion) this entire month. I have also fallen behind and basically quit reading all of my usual blogs. So sad. So busy. So overwhelmed.

Current music: I’m really digging the Billy Joel station on Pandora lately. I added Paul Simon as the “variety” and I’m pretty pleased with the result.

Current guilty pleasure: Cookie dough. I am chuckling a little bit to myself right now because I only just realized that the package [literally] says “do not consume raw cookie dough.”

Current drink: When we were at the grocery store last week, I noticed that they had mello yello zero and for some reason that just sounded incredible to me. Probably because I am tired, but who knows. We got a fridge pack of it. Maybe I can put a lemon-lime Nuun in it and call it a recovery beverage.

Current food: I’ve been really loving chicken salad lately (not a salad with chicken, but chicken salad). Pretty much every day for lunch I have a wrap with chicken salad. It’s delicious.

Also, in the interest of full-disclosure (there is also a current confession category that perhaps this next little spiel would more accurately be categorized in, but that’s neither here nor there), I kind of freaked out when they started putting the calorie content on this chicken salad. I have been enjoying it for WEEKS and then all of a sudden … bam! 900+ calories?! Holy moly. I honestly thought I was in a really good place with my nutrition and overall outlook towards food and this really threw me for a loop.

I know that I can eat whatever and that I NEED calories to fuel my running, but I guess I prefer to remain somewhat blissfully unaware on certain things. I came really close to not buying the chicken salad again this week, but I bought it and I will enjoy it. I might even take a sharpie and mark out the calorie content!

Current obsession: Organizing my closet. Maybe it’s just me, but there is something very cathartic about cleaning out and organizing a closet. Just me? Okay, cool. Regardless, I was on a mission to de-clutter and organize. I got all new matching coat hangers. I have never bought coat hangers before and this was obviously not an absolutely necessary expense, but they were cheap and they make me happy, so … worth it.

Current need: REST

Current indulgence: Taking a few minutes out of my morning to write this blog post before heading to work!

Current bane of my existence: My shoulder. For whatever reason, it has decided to start coming out of place on the regular now. It’s a tad frustrating (and painful to boot).

Current procrastination: So many things … fully cleaning out our storage unit, hanging pictures, changing my address at all of the places that has to be done, etc. My post-tax season to do list is quite lengthy!

Current confession: I am feeling very overwhelmed lately and I feel like I am not giving 100% to anything. I am usually an “all-in” type of person and I *strongly dislike* feeling like I am not doing my best. I know this about myself (self-awareness is key right) and yet somehow I can’t seem to stop it.

Current excitement: We bought a house and we are (almost) all moved in! Super fun and exciting! The moving part … not so much.

I remember thinking how terrible moving was when we moved out of our other house and I also remember thinking that I never wanted to move again (like ever), but when we moved out of our house, we moved (what was supposed to be temporarily) into a garage apartment and that meant that we most definitely would be moving again at some point. Well … that some point came to fruition now (almost 3 years (!!!) later).

We knew the area that we wanted to be in (this was the most important factor) and we have been keeping our eyes open for new houses that became available in our price range. We were able to be fairly selective, which was really nice! After being on the lookout for 3 years, our eyes are tired and we are ready to rest them in our new home.

Current quote: Home is not a place, it’s a feeling.

This will probably sound super cliché, but I feel like I knew from the minute that we walked into our new house and it was going to be our home. It migh’ve taken Daniel a little bit longer to get on board, but he is all in now (thank goodness)!

Our house was on the market for a little while and eventually the price dropped into our range. As soon as it did, we were on it. I called my grandmother (she is in her nineties and still works as a real estate agent … she’s incredible) and told her that we wanted to look at it. The next day we looked at it and the day after that we made an offer.

My heart lives on Mobile Bay (the sign came with the house). And yes, we are doing the whole white picket fence, living the American dream thing over here currently. Haha!

It’s been a crazy, but incredible month!

January Recap

Well guys, January is done! You should all have your 1099s and W-2s at this point, so it’s time to get those tax returns filed. Fun times! Ha. BUT … only 2 and 1/2 more months of craziness remains! It is probably too early for a countdown.

Since we are at the end of the first month of 2017, I figured it was time for a monthly recap post. I tweaked my “monthly recap” template for 2017 to keep things a little more interesting around here. We’ll start with running (because … running … duh) and then we’ll move on to the miscellaneous randomness portion of the post. There is not much that I love more than running and miscellaneous randomness, so I’m excited to report on both of these things at the end of each month.

Here we go!

RECAP: January 2017

Workouts: 8 workouts this month. From an overview perspective, I had one week of taper for the First Light Half, followed by a week of recovery (so just one workout at the end of that week) and then two pretty solid weeks of training for Rock N Roll New Orleans with 3 workouts per week.

2 mi. WU, 4 mi. brisk (6:49, 6:45, 6:40, 6:40), 1 mi. recovery, 6 X 30 seconds (6:00, 5:56, 5:52, 5:48, 5:44, 5:40), 2 mi. CD

16 mile moderate pace LR (7:30)

2 mi. WU, 12 X 400 w/ 200 rec. (85, 87, 85, 85, 84, 85, 86, 85, 87, 86, 89, 86), 2 mi. CD

2 mi. WU, 3 X 2 miles (13:00, 12:54, 12:44), 2 mi. CD

14 mile LR w/ last 5: 7:02, 6:44, 6:42, 6:45, 6:55

2 mi. WU, 4 X 800 (3:00, 3:00 2:56, 2:54), 2 X 1 mi. (5:56, 5:52), 1.5 mi. CD

15 mi. moderate pace LR (7:38)

2 mi. WU, 3 mi. tempo (6:34 avg.), 1 mi. recovery, 3 X 1:00 (5:50 – 6:00), 2 mi. CD

Favorite workout: I really enjoyed what I am going to call “the race week workout,” which has been some sort of tempo combined with some quicker pickups towards the end (to get you used to pushing hard on tired legs). My first and last workout in January are both examples of this.

Races: 2 races this month. I ran the First Light Half on January 8th & the Charity Chase 5K on January 28th. I mentioned it in my last post, but I’m still contemplating the idea of doing a half marathon each month in 2017. July and August are actually the only two months that there isn’t a half somewhere in the state of Alabama, so I think it’s doable from a travel perspective. The half is my favorite distance too, so it just makes sense … right? Right.

Favorite Race: First Light Half! I rarely order race photos (in my 10+ years of running, I think I’ve ordered race photos maybe 5 times), but I really liked this one from First Light this year. I like that the clock is prominently displayed and I LOVE that my dad is in the background (on the left side in the blue jacket).

Paces: My paces this month ranged from 5:52 to 10:34! That’s a pretty wide range. The 5:52 mile was in one of my workouts (definitely not an everyday pace by any means) and the runs that I do with the half marathon training group that I am coaching are usually closer to the 9:30 to 10:30 range.

Total miles: 290

Distances: The distances I ran ranged from 3 miles to 16 miles this month.

Strength work: Y’all. Please be super impressed by this stat. I did 4.5 hours of strength training in January (in the form of six 45 minute sessions). WHAT?! That is a big deal from someone who formerly disregarded any and all strength training. I can now pick things up and put them down with the best of ’em.

Current book: I am still working on Shoe Dog: A Memoir by the Creator of NIKE by Phil Knight. At the rate I am going, I will likely still be working on this one until April. I’m not saying that it isn’t interesting, because it is really good so far, but I am just SO TIRED at the end of the day that I only make it through one or two pages before my eyes close and the Kindle hits me in the face (which oddly doesn’t even wake me up).

Current music: I’ve really been digging the song Just Like Fire by P!nk lately. We can get ’em running, running, running.

Current guilty pleasure: Afternoon coffee. You know it’s tax season when afternoon coffee comes back into your life. We have a fresh batch of iced coffee at the office, which is just plain irresistible sometimes.

Current drink: I placed my first official Nuun “ambassador” order and so I’m well stocked on Nuun for a ‘lil while. It will be interesting to see how long the 12 tubes will actually last me. I drink two tabs at a time and sometimes I drink two or three cups per day, so it might not last too long!

Current food: Breakfast has been the most popular meal that we have been eating out lately. My favorite breakfast meal that I’ve had recently was the Bananas Foster French Toast that I got from Brick & Spoon. It was every bit as delicious as it sounds.

Current obsession: Okay, so I’ve got two obsessions (I’m a slightly obsessive person anyway, so the fact that I only have two is probably a step in the right direction). One is Wayfair! They’ve got “Just What I Need!” Daniel and I have been browsing and saving lots of things! The second one is ChapStick (just realized that this is one of those things that what you call it is actually just a brand (like Q-Tips or Coke)). Santa put several things of “lip balm” in my stocking this year and I can’t get enough!

Current need: I need to pack for New Orleans!

Current indulgence: This is more of a “contemplated” indulgence at this point, but I am thinking about getting a standing desk converter for my computer at work. Unfortunately my computer is so heavy (#fourmonitorproblems) that the one I would need is quite expensive. I can’t decide if the cost is justified or not. I know sitting all day is not good and I really like the idea of having the option to stand, but I can also see it being one of those things that sounds way cooler than it actually is. Anyone out there have a standing desk converter? I need some feedback before I decide whether or not to splurge on this!

Current bane of my existence: My phone is about to drive me bonkers. Something is wrong with the volume settings and sometimes it rings even when I have it on silent and other times my alarm makes ZERO noise even when I have the volume on. So strange.

Current procrastination: My windshield has a huge crack in it and I have definitely been putting off getting that replaced. Did you know that you can actually get a ticket for having a cracked windshield (obstruction of view)? Daniel got a ticket for that once. For right now it is a risk I’m worth dealing with.

Current confession: I sometimes eat foods that are passed their expiration date. Daniel thinks that this is horrific and I usually don’t even think twice about it.

Current quote: In the spirit of getting prepared to be uncomfortable in New Orleans … 

Current excitement: Rock N Roll New Orleans! It’s ALMOST HERE. I can’t wait!

Tell me something that you are currently excited about!

1 Step Back, 2 Steps Forward

Hi there! It’s hard to believe that another year has almost come and gone.

Regardless of whether or not you are a New Year’s resolutioner, we likely all approach the new year with some sort of “starting fresh” mentality. Looking back and reflecting on the previous year can be a good way to gauge your goals and plans for the upcoming year. With this post, I’m going to start by looking back and then look forward towards a few goals.

Looking back …

I think it is fair to say that 2016 has been the most well documented year of life EVER. 2016 was my first full year of blogging (it began in June 2015, so last year was only a partial year). Sometimes I feel like I have no clue exactly what I am doing or trying to accomplish with this blog (um hello … did someone say I should start an online diary), but regardless I have discovered that I really enjoy writing and the process of writing spurs at least a smidgen of creativity in my otherwise calculated, logical brain.

As I’m sure you have gathered, running is one fairly stable topic that I always have something to share about, so the majority of the time I just write about running. One common theme that I have noticed among runners is that running brings people through some tough situations. Regardless as to “why” you run, running has a way of making you the best version of yourself and it also brings together and creates a sense of community and belonging. I hope to continue to run and write about running for many years to come!

Speaking of running, I’d like to think that 2016 was the most consistent that I have ever been with my training, but again, it’s hard to really gauge that as prior years are not quite as well documented. Trust me, they are all documented in various yearly planners, but they just aren’t quite as easily analyzed. I did over 50 workouts this year! February, March and April were my lowest months, but this is just the natural progression that my training takes each year during tax season. I view it as my “recovery” time and I don’t force myself to do workouts if I am not feeling it. September, October and December were my highest months from a workout perspective (November got booted out due to the fall).

I ran 24 races this year! Oh how I wish there had been just one more. 25 is such a better number (oh well). So yeah, lots of races! It’s no secret that I love to race. I think that in the past, I have typically averaged about 15 or so races per year (some years higher and some years lower), but this is definitely the most. What can I say … when you have a running blog, you need content. Ha!

I intended to pick one favorite race for the year, but I really just can’t! I’m picking one race for each distance …

2 mile: Chickasabogue Park 2 Miler
5K: Hot Trot 5K
4 mile: Shark Run 4 Miler
10K: Shrimp Fest 10K
12K: Battleship 12K
15K: Double Bridge Run
10 mile: Turkey 10
Half: Rock ‘N’ Roll New Orleans
Relay: Ragnar Tennessee

I did a few odd distance races this year (2 mile, 4 mile, 12K & 15K) that I don’t do every year. I’ve done two mile and four mile races before, but this was my first time racing a 12K and a 15K, which = an automatic PR! Woo hoo! I also got a 2 mile, 4 mile and 10K PR this year as well, but again, those are distances that I don’t race as frequently. I am a little bit disappointed to not have gotten a 5K or half marathon PR, but that gives me something good to shoot for in 2017!

Ragnar TN sticks out in my mind as one of the most fun racing experiences of the year, as does the First Light relay. A lot of my favorite running memories have more to do with the people that they were shared with as opposed to the number on the clock or the placement on the podium. Don’t get me wrong, I love a good PR and a W, but sometimes (or all the time), there are more important things.

If you missed out on any part of the year and are really bored, here are my monthly recaps!

January Recap
February Recap
March Recap
April Recap
May Recap
June Recap
July Recap
August Recap
September Recap
October Recap
November Recap
December Recap

Although it may not seem like it sometimes, we actually have lives outside of running too (really … we do … I promise) and 2016 was a great year in non-running life as well!

Daniel and I have both settled into wonderful routines at work. In 2015, we both changed jobs and Daniel was finishing up school, taking boards, etc. 2016 was so much nicer! We both love our jobs and in 2016 there was no excitement (read: drama) on the career front. It was steady and stable and for that we are very thankful!

I became a “certified” coach this year, but at this point I would classify coaching as more of a hobby than a second job. I don’t know exactly where that will lead in the future … perhaps no where. Regardless, I am glad that I attended the class. Gaining knowledge is never a bad thing!

2016 was our sixth year of marriage (crazy!) and we are in a really good place (in my opinion … hopefully he feels the same :)). With no job changes, no more school and basically no big life changes, I would venture to say that 2016 was one of our best years, relationship wise. We have grown together and matured as a couple.

We made an offer on a house that we ultimately didn’t get (they decided not to sell it … ugh … who does that), but again now we have a goal for 2017. I know that when the timing is right, we will find something great. Thankfully we are in a position right now to be EXTREMELY picky with what we want and where we want it, which is a huge blessing. We also went through Dave Ramsey’s Financial Peace University this year, which has been a total game-changer and in some ways I am even glad that the timing of buying a house was delayed a little bit so that we have more time to save.

Brooks turned 5 this year! He is so grown up. Please someone tell me that golden retrievers live to be 100?! We have no immediate plans for any non-furry babies (just in case you were wondering … that will not be appearing in the goals section of this post). Daniel’s sister, Michele, gave us a niece and his sister, Leigh-Ann, will be having a baby boy any day now! Baby Ava is precious and we can’t wait to meet Baby Liam!

Looking ahead …

One thing that is sure enough about to happen in 2017 is tax season. In an odd sort of way, I am looking forward to it. Tax season used to completely turn my life upside down, but after 9 years as a CPA (how in the world is that possible), I feel like I kind of have it down. I enjoy what I do and I tend to do well working in a structured, busy environment. Even though work will be busy, I still get to have a life outside of work. It took me several years to grasp this concept, but now that I have my life has been revolutionized. Goal: Thrive (not just survive) during tax season.

I recently started reading the book, Intuitive Eating, by Evelyn Tribole and Elyse and I can tell that it is going to be a life-changing read. I have had so many little “aha” moments already and I am only half of the way through the book. I was somewhat familiar with the concept of eating intuitively, but I didn’t realize that there was a book and basically an entire online support community out there to help you through the process. Goal: Work on becoming an intuitive eater.

Starting in January, I will be coaching a half marathon training group at Running Wild and I am really excited about that! I know this won’t come as a surprise to anyone, but I already have several races picked out too. I have three half marathons picked out so far (one in early January, one in mid February and one in early March). Goal: I want a half marathon PR in 2017!

Also in running-related goals, I’ve got my eye on the one mile and two mile state records for my age. Hopefully I will have a chance to chase those down this year as well. While I’m at it, I’d really love a nice 5K PR as well. Goal: I want ALL the PRs. Is that too vague?!

As a general goal, I hope to continue to grow and mature emotionally and spiritually during 2017.

As another general goal, I would like to travel to somewhere that I haven’t been and experience a few new things this year.

Tell me: any specific goals or things that you hope to accomplish in 2017?

December Recap

Happy New Year’s Eve! It’s time for the last monthly recap of 2016.

MONTH RECAP: December

Total running: 292

Workouts: December was one of my strongest months of training this year! I’m happy to end the year on a good note.

2 mi. WU, 8 X 800 (3:02, 3:05, 3:05, 3:03, 3:06, 3:09, 3:11, 3:19), 1 mi. CD

2 mi. WU, 12 X 400 hill repeats, 2 mi. CD

2 mi. WU, 3 X 2 mile (6:19, 6:20, 6:18, 6:20, 6:16, 6:18), 1.5 mi. CD

2 mi. WU, 5 X 1 mile (6:11, 6:11, 6:07, 6:03, 6:00), 2 mi. CD

2 mi. WU, 5 mi. LT tempo (6:22, 6:22, 6:22, 6:22, 6:18), 2 mi. CD

15 mi. moderate pace LR (7:33 avg.)

2 mi. WU, 5 X 600 (2:09, 2:10, 2:09, 2:12, 2:12), 5 X 400 (1:24, 1:27, 1:27, 1:28, 1:28), 1.5 mi. CD

2 mi. WU, 5 mi. wave tempo (6:27, 6:25, 6:27, 6:25, 6:27), 2 mi. CD

Races: Only one race this month … the Baton Rouge Beach Half Marathon.

Favorite Race: By default this goes to the BRB Half. Honestly though, this was not one of my favorite races. I’m sure the fact that it was rainy and windy doesn’t help my evaluation of enjoyment factor. Weather conditions aside, I don’t think I would necessarily do this race again. There are just too many races that I really do like to re-run ones that are just “meh.”

Longest run: My longest run of the month was 15 miles. I think that will pretty much be my max distance LR for half marathon training. However, I did run 26 miles in one day this month, crewing for Rebecca’s 50 miler!

Shortest run: 3 miles.

Favorite run: My favorite run this month was the first run of the month when I was in Birmingham. It was so beautiful up there and I really enjoyed running on a few trails. A little change of scenery can do the mind and body wonders!  

Rest days: … crickets …

Other: One of my goals for the new year is to make strength training a regular part of my weekly routine. I got a jump on that in December. I figured if I went ahead and started creating the “habit,” it might have a better chance of sticking. I went to two Body Pump classes and I really enjoyed them. Rebecca, Jessica and I also started doing group sessions with a trainer (personal training, but much cheaper :)) and we did that twice a week for the last two weeks of the month. Adding strength training into the mix has been a nice change so far. We are all really enjoying the group sessions. Gotta get ‘dem gainz.

I don’t know about you, but I’m pretty excited about ringing in the New Year! I am hopeful that 2017 will be a good one!

November Recap

Hey guys! Can you believe that November has *almost* come and gone? That means that December is upon us and before we know it, it will be Christmas (woo hoo!) … and then tax season (womp, womp).

MONTH RECAP: November

Total running: 267.50

Workouts: Not much to report on the workout front this month. I spent the first part of the month doing nothing but easy runs, as my knee healed up. I jumped back into the swing of things with racing as soon as I was able to complete a tempo run. With a race almost every weekend, most of my other runs were just done at easy pace in order to recover for the next race.

2 mi. WU, 4 mi. progression tempo (6:30, 6:24, 6:21, 6:16), 2 mi. CD

17 mi. moderate pace LR (7:41 average)

8 mi. w/ 10 X 1:00 pickups @ 6:00 pace

Races: 3! Battleship 12K, Turkey 10 and the Turkey Trot 5K.

Favorite Race: I really enjoyed the Battleship 12K! It was fun to race an unconventional distance and I will definitely add this race to my yearly rotation.

Longest run: 17 miles (this was my longest run since August!)

Shortest run: 3 miles

Favorite run: My favorite run was Turkey 10. I like the 10 mile distance and I had a smart, well-executed race that day. The race itself isn’t much to write home about (super bare bones), but I always really enjoy running that course.

Rest days: 2

Other: I got one elliptical session in (towards the beginning of the month, while my knee was “recovering”) and I rode the bike a few times.

Tell me. What do you have on tap for December?

October Recap

Hello! Happy Monday!

Can you believe that tomorrow is the first day of November?! November always has a way of prompting feelings of thankfulness and I am looking forward to a month of positivity and thoughts of gratitude.

MONTH RECAP: October

Total running: 241 miles

Workouts: I’d say it was a decent month of workouts, especially considering that I missed an entire week of running altogether. #TrackTuesday seems to be a fairly regular occurrence these days and I’m loving it!

3 mi. WU, 4 mi. LT tempo (6:44, 6:18, 6:18, 6:31), 1.75 mi. CD

2 mi. WU, 3 X 1 mile (6:36, 6:27, 6:33), 2 mi. CD

16 mile moderate pace LR (avg. 8:09 for 1st 8 & avg. 7:22 for 2nd 8)

2 mi. WU, 20 X 200 (40, 42, 41, 40, 40, 40, 41, 40, 40, 41, 40, 41, 40, 40, 41, 41, 41, 41, 38, 37), 3 mi. CD

2 mi. WU, 8 X 400 (91, 92, 91, 90, 90, 91, 89, 89), 3 mi. CD

Races: 3 this month. A 5K, 10K & Half Marathon. So very balanced! I also missed two 5Ks that I was originally planning to do, but it’s no biggie. There are plenty more races to be run (thankfully). One of the races that I missed was a Halloween themed costume race and Jessica, Rebecca and I were going to go as “three blind mice.”

Three blind mice. Three blind mice.
See how they run. See how they run.

It would’ve been fun, but hopefully we can make it happen next year (I’m going to hold on to our costumes :)).

Favorite Race: I really enjoyed the Shrimp Festival 10K in Orange Beach. The course was great, the entire race was very well organized, I got a 10K PR & ran with friends. It’s hard to beat that!

Longest run: 16 miles

Shortest run: 2.75 miles (the pre-race warm up that ended rather abruptly). Oh, I almost forgot to tell y’all, but I went back to the scene of the “incident” to check it out and discovered this major crack in the sidewalk. Crack kills!

Favorite run: The Comeback Run! Daniel and I decided to make a joint comeback (he had been off for 10 days and I had been off for 7 days). We did 3 miles together and it was glorious! His foot bothered him a little bit and my knee was still a tad sore, but for the most part we were just happy to be running.

Rest days: 7

Other: I finally have some cross-training to report! I went to the gym a few times during my “injury recovery” and successfully mastered the art of the elliptical. I don’t hate it (as long as I have music, TV or a book (or possibly all three) to distract me). I must have the distractions though.

I’ve got a few races coming up in November that I’m excited about. A 10K (possibly (this one is still TBD based on how my knee is cooperating)), a 10 miler and a 5K on Thanksgiving Day (an appropriately named and timed Turkey Trot (as opposed to our other mid-October local Turkey Trot)).

What races do you have coming up?

September Recap

Hey guys! Can you believe that today is the last day of September?!

Can you believe that it is actually starting to feel like fall?! We are in the midst of our first official cool snap of the season. I hope that you experiencing the same thing where you are, because it is glorious! It was 56 degrees on our run this morning (as opposed to 80-something degrees yesterday evening). All of a sudden … it’s FALL!

I’ve got a 5K tomorrow morning and I am pretty pumped about this weather. Surely it can stick around for at least one day?! Fingers crossed.

Since September is *almost* done, it’s time for a monthly recap post.

MONTH RECAP: September

Total running: 273

Workouts: Lots of workouts this month!

2 mi. WU, 12 X 400 w/ 200 recovery (83, 83, 83, 82, 83, 83, 85, 82, 84, 84, 84, 84), 1.5 mi. CD

1 mi. WU, 3 X 2 miles w/ 400 rec. (6:33, 6:21, 6:17, 6:21, 6:15, 6:09), 1.5 mi. CD

14 mile moderate pace LR @ 7:43

3 mi. WU, 4 mi. wave tempo (6:40, 6:25, 6:24, 6:26), 1.6 mi. CD

2 mi. WU, 8 X 800 w/ 400 rec. (3:02, 2:56, 2:57, 2:58, 3:00, 3:00, 3:04, 3:12), 2 mi. CD

14 mile moderate pace LR @ 7:26

2 mi. WU, 5 X 1 mile (6:15, 6:11, 6:07, 6:03, 6:00), 2 mi. CD

Races: Only one race again this month … the Hurricane Run 5K.

Favorite Race: By default this category goes to the Hurricane Run 5K. I would take this category away, but the fall racing season is about to be in high gear. I’ve got at least 3 races planned each month in October and November! Woo hoo!

Longest run: 15 miles

Shortest run: 3.5 miles

Favorite run: I can’t believe that I am going to say this, but my favorite run this month was the 3 X 2 mile workout I did a few weeks ago. It was a killer workout that was a huge confidence boost for me. I typically do longer repeat workouts like this on the TM, but this time I took it to the track (what?!). I negative split the workout and finished up faster than my goal range. Woo hoo!

I actually had a hard time choosing one run as my favorite (#runnerproblems). I’ve really been enjoying the track workouts. This is coming from a runner that used to strongly dislike the track (side note: my parents taught me not to use the word “hate” when I was a little kid, so “strongly dislike” is code for the H word).

I guess the main change is that my mindset and specific goals have shifted in the last month. Each track workout is now an easily identifiable, measurable action step leading me closer to the goals that I have set for this training cycle (in general: focus on speed and shorter distances and specific: sub 18 5k, sub 37:30 10k, sub 62 10 mile, sub 1:23 half).

Rest days: 1

Other: I got in a couple of walks and went paddle boarding a few times. Success!

I’ll leave you with this little gem. Y’all know I love a good sunset. The reflection on the water for this one was so pretty. It felt like it was pointed directly at us.

That’s a wrap! I’m really looking forward to October. Lots of races and hopefully fast running to be done.

Tell me. What do you have on tap for October?

August Recap

Hello September!

MONTH RECAP: August

Total running: 320 miles.

Workouts: After looking back at my training log, I realized that I skipped, cut short or otherwise modified 6 workouts (out of 8 total) this month. Hello burnout, nice to see you …

9 mi. run w/ 5 tempo mi. @ 6:36 avg. (was supposed to be 8 X 800)

16 mi. moderate pace LR (was supposed to be 20)

2 mi. WU, 3 X 2 mi. (6:33, 6:16, 6:33, 6:46, 6:59, 7:00), 2 mi. CD

12 Easy + 4 Up-Tempo (6:46, 6:55, 7:15, 7:16)

Races: Chickasabogue Park 2 Miler. I only did one race this month, but it was a good one! This race was the silver lining in an otherwise not-so-great month of training. It was fun to race a shorter distance and see the fruition of the summer training.

Favorite Race: By default, this goes to Chickasabogue Park 2 Miler, but any race that is a PR is likely to win the”favorite race” category anyway.

Longest run: 18 miles with some quality friend time!

Shortest run: 3 miles.

Favorite run: Vacation running! It was nice to mix things up a little bit when we were in Destin. The combination of a change of scenery, new (to us) routes, being at the beach and having no set schedule led to some very enjoyable runs.

Rest days: 1

Other: I got in a couple of walks (one w/ my cousin and one w/ my mom), I rode the bike while Daniel ran one day and I finally got to go skiing!

I thought it was super cool how the map turned out on Strava!

What’s next: More to come on this …

What are you looking forward to in September?

Hopefully we’ll start seeing some cooler temps and there will be some fast fall running in our future!

July Recap

Hey friends! Happy Monday and Happy August! It’s time for the next installment of the monthly summary posts.

MONTH RECAP: July

Total running: 371.25. Whew. Lots of miles this month. Peak weeks of 50K training and then running 31 miles contributed to that total.

Workouts: I have more time not only to run, but also to rest and focus on recovery, during the summer months. I stayed pretty consistent with my workouts again this month, so I am happy about that. I can tell that my fitness base is pretty good right now. I know that even though I didn’t get to do the goal race I was training for, the training was not for naught. In addition to the workouts listed below, I had several long runs as well.

3 mi. WU, Firecracker 5K (6:05, 5:57, 6:12, 0:38 = 18:53), 2 mi. CD

14 mi. @ 8:34 + 4 mi. race @ 6:32 avg.

2 mi. WU, 400 (78), 1600 (5:57), Milk Mile (6:32), 1 mi. CD

2 mi. WU, 12 X 400 (86, 86, 85, 85, 84, 83, 84, 84, 84, 85, 84, 84), 2 mi. CD

5 easy + 5 brisk (7:03, 7:08, 7:02, 7:02, 7:06)

3 mi. WU, 4 mi. tempo (6:24 avg.), 2.25 mi. CD

2 mi. WU, 4 mi. tempo (6:17 avg.), 7 mi. CD

Races: 3 this month! I ran the Firecracker 5K, the Shark Run 4 Miler, and the Milk Mile.

Favorite Race: I think I’m going to give this one to the Milk Mile. I was NOT expecting to enjoy that race (like at all), but I’m so glad that I tried something out of my comfort zone. It was surprisingly fun!

Longest run: 21 miles (Part I of the “birthday miles”)

Shortest run: 3 miles. I had three 3 mile treadmill runs this month. I usually take the “if I don’t have time to do at least 5 miles, why even bother” approach. I have to make an exception for that during the summer because of the heat though. Our treadmill is on the front porch where there is lots of sunlight and no air conditioning. By the time evening rolls around, the treadmill room is basically a sauna. I sweat WAY more on a 3 mile treadmill run this time of year than I do on a 5 – 8 mile run outside. It’s crazy!

Favorite run: It’s a tie. I absolutely loved my beach run! I also absolutely loved my birthday 50K (Part I & Part II).

Rest days: Two. Much needed and much appreciated.

Other: I didn’t do a great job of keeping track of my “other” activities, which likely means they were pretty minimal anyway. I know that I did the elliptical and stair master once and I rode the bike with Daniel at least once as well. I still haven’t been skiing all summer, which is just plain unacceptable. Hopefully now that the bay has calmed down I will be able to get out there. I’m also going to need my dad to bring the boat back (hint hint)!

I am so glad that August is here because the bay is so beautiful this time of year. It’s calmer and clearer. I hope to get some more beach runs in this month.

What’s next: So far I just have one 2 mile race planned. I’m excited to test the speed out a little bit and see where I am. I will also be starting marathon training this month! I’m feeling pretty motivated. I know that I need to put in some really solid work to get to where I want to be (more to come on that later), but I’m ready to get on it!

Work will be picking up some this month and Daniel and I have a fun little beach trip coming up soon. It should be a great month!

Work hard. Play harder.

Tell me: What are you looking forward to in August?