Memory Foam

Two things I want to talk about; two of my favorite things actually.

Running, and food.

Yes, I have a delicious recipe to share. I know, I've been slacking in that department.

I've been slacking at life in general, but hey May will do that to ya.

I did this on Sunday, and it was super encouraging:

My Garmin was pumped to be used again. Speaking of, I tied my ribbons on it from that Boston run that I did in Baltimore, to remind myself every time that I run never to take it for granted...

I like it.

I didn't think that I had sub-8's in me yet. I haven't been running many miles at all, and this past Sunday was the first time that I decided to push the pace a little bit. I'm happy to report that the run actually was actually semi-easy... and I definitely wanted to keep going.

It got me to thinking about out bodies, and how crazy they are. Once I found my stride everything kind of fell into place.. and my legs arms and lungs were all like, Oh Yeah I remember this, we used to do this all the time. Kind of like a memory-foam type effect.

On to the food? Thought so...

Trader Joe's did it again on Sunday. I grabbed a bag of red quinoa off the shelf and happened to glance at the back of the package.

Quinoa salad? Sounded simple enough. So I found the ingredients, mixed it all up, and literally fed myself for four days. Some days I added shrimp on top for a bit more substance.

Because I'm too lazy to type this all up:

It truly was delicious and I have enjoyed it for lunch every day this week. Quinoa is high in protein so it helped me to stay full.

One last thing. My coworker made me aware of this organization last week, and it seems like a pretty great cause. Athletes Serving Athletes is based in the Baltimore area, and all about serving athletes of all shapes and sizes... and helping them reach their goals no matter what they may be. Check out their link here if you're interested....

http://www.athletesservingathletes.org/

That's all folks. Cheers to some good eats!

Perfection

I've got to start off this post by giving a huge shout out to the perfect Maryland weather this weekend - without 3 consecutive days of 65 and sunny, my weekend would have been far less fun.

First Sun Sesh of the year!

Secondly, in order of importance, I just got back from running five miles. It felt so great. Not like, hey that was super easy kind of great. But hey, I am continuing to have more and more confidence in my foot, and it feels so good to be running again kind of great.

I wanted to push it and do six, but I think I'll save that for next weekend. I did push to hold an 8(ish) minute pace, and I stuck to it pretty well. 8 minute miles certainly don't come as easily as the did last September but hey, I'll get there again. My body knows how to do it, it's just a matter of re-training. Right?

As alluded to above, Andrew and I spent a large amount of time outdoors this past weekend. We did some frisbee golfing Friday evening, during which for some reason during it I felt super tired and kept whining and sitting down on the course. He loved that.

I think it's because I hadn't eaten enough protein that day? Maybe?

Late Saturday morning we headed down to Great Fall, Virginia, for some pretty beautiful hiking. The weather was once again awesome, and the trails that we hiked offer some grand scenes.

We also saw a large amount of caterpillars while out on the trail, which I hated, because I was convinced I was going to step on one. Andrew kept assuring me that half of the things I was pointing out weren't caterpillars, that they were centipedes, but I stuck to my guns and continued calling every bug we saw from there on out caterpillars.

Sounds about right, doesn't it?

Mr. Grillmaster threw some veggie burgers on the grill upon returning home, and I did the essential by whipping up some margaritas. We had an awesome dinner on the patio, enjoying the last of the warmth that the day had to offer.

Here we are, another Sunday. Another busy week ahead of me. I have this sneaking suspicion that May is going to fly by - the rest of our month is packed with activities and travels and shenanigans. Just how I like it. 

Any racers this weekend? I know there were a lot offered this weekend. I have a small 5k next Saturday with my Girls on the Run team that should be fun for all.

I'm off to throw some weights around, strong is the new sexy after all :)

Cheers!

Ramping Back Up

It's been a bit since we've talked running on here eh? Kind of weird. Have you been worried? Don't be. I think it's because things have been so iffy.

I've been feeling a little less iffy.

This past weekend, I ran 3 miles on both Saturday and Sunday. That's nothing, I know, but for me where I stand right now, it's something. My foot didn't yell, it felt good, and this is on top of being on my feet most of the day on Saturday while bar-crawling through Annapolis.

That's a whole different story.

Saturday morning Andrew and I ran in a local 5k put on through his cousin's school. It was small - small enough that we both finished right under 24 minutes with his younger cousin and each placed first in our age group. Hey I'll take it.

Especially seeing that my breakfast prior to the race consisted of this:

Tots. Sorry I'm not sorry.

Long story short, I feel good about my foot. Finally. For awhile I was back and forth, and super nervous to ramp up the mileage too quickly.

I will stay between 3-4 miles tomorrow and Thursday, and possibly try for 5 miles one day this weekend if things go well.

My goal is to 'comfortably' get back up to my normal 7-8 mile jaunts by June 1. In my mind, marathon training starts in June. 

Until then, I'll continue to stick with all my swimming/yoga/spinning distractions on the side. And of course, so many planks.

Spring = planks outside!

Andrew's out of town this week so I am getting back to neutral in many areas of life, as well as making plans for the month of May. Can you believe that May is on Wednesday? That blows my mind and makes me so happy.

On the music front, Mr. Kenny Chesney himself has a new album out tomorrow if you're a country fanatic like me. Just thought you may need something to brighten up your Tuesday!

Cheers to ramping back up!

3 years.

Ok, we have some quick catching up to do.

First and foremost, someone let Tiger Woods that I'm coming in hot:

Did a little golfing this afternoon. I actually am far below average. That's OK.

Secondly, I'm running again. Slowly, and short distances. But I'm running. It makes me so happy. I ran two miles on Wednesday, and another two this past Friday... and will be participating in the Charm City Run for Boston tomorrow in Baltimore.

Yesterday, 4/20, was my three year running anniversary. It was the mark of my first ever half marathon - the Horsetooth Half - in Fort Collins, CO, that sparked my passion for long distance running.

I ran it in 1 hours and 51 grueling minutes.

It's a beautiful race - I actually have a friend who ran it as his first half ever today too, and killed it - and if you are ever in the area, I recommend doing it simply for the awesome scenery.

Andrew and I have recently talked about how my journey back to running will be very similar to the journey I was on to start. It's been several months since I've ran any miles at all, and it will be a lot like starting back at square zero.

Guys, I got a cramp during my two miles on Friday.

I'm not discouraged. With the recent events at Boston, I'm actually extremely motivated. I really, really want to try to qualify for Boston in '14. That would be extremely hard to do given the short amount of time on my hands... but if I can do it safely, you better bet I'm gonna be in Boston next April.

Last but not least, I would be remiss if I didn't touch on my travels last weekend.

I could write a novel about my time in Colorado, how much fun it was, and all the PG-13 trouble that we got into. But I would wager not too many people care. Plus after my aggressive post on Friday... I'll keep this short.

Friday to Monday was a blur. There was good food, good beverages, and good music to be had by all. And believe me, we hit those three categories hard.

sometimes at the same time.

We met hugged one of my favorite country artists, Florida Georgia Line, and I haven't been able to stop listening to them since. The concert was amazing, and if you're a country lover and they are in your area this summer, go. Just go.

And of course there were plenty of wolf shenanigans.

The last day brought some snow, yet somehow my flight still got out back to Baltimore because DIA is a machine and rarely cancels flights. I landed that night, woke up the next day and realized that over the 10 days that I was gone on my trip, spring had sprung here in the Baltimore area.

That makes me so happy. I wish I could go rip out 10 miles today. But for the sake of smartness, I will sulk off to the pool and get some laps in.

Hope everyone has/had a great, safe weekend. I know personally, I am feeling extra blessed to be living in a country that doesn't put up with B.S.

Cheers to that!