Feature Friday: Book Review & Pick ONE questions!

Happy Friday! This week felt like it went by so slowly. I mean like Turtle-speed slow. I blame it on the rainy/ cold/ cloudy/snowy weather that we’ve had this week. Also this weekend looks like basically another wash (tomorrow looks OK, but cold again) so looks like more house chores and epsom salt baths will be on tap! What do you love to do when it’s rainy/ cold outside? We’ll also have to stock up on more hot cocoa & whipped cream (what makes the cocoa extra delicious) since we consumed them almost every night this past week. I’m getting my long run (13-14 miles) done this morning rather than waiting until tomorrow since the weather will continue to get worse and I’ve got a crazy week of running on-tap next week before the Lake Powell Half. Hence the meme about being overly excited to get up extra early (I was literally wondering how I could possibly fit in swimming/long run/barre class tomorrow while also working —> I didn’t come to a conclusion yet, but I’ll let you know if I somehow miraculously fit it all in!)

SOURCE

I also blazed through another book (less than 2 weeks time!), so I’ve got a book review for you! I recently read The Fault In Our Stars by John Green. I had purchased this book several years ago (got through maybe 30 pages?) and then it got lost among the shuffle of moving.

SOURCE

I normally shy away from these types of books because 1. Reading sad stores —> meh. not really my thing 2. The writing was a bit “young” for my taste, but I wanted a fast read so I picked this up on our bookshelf, dusted it off, and used it as a “lighter” story. I wouldn’t say I really enjoyed it- I thought the storyline was cute and the characters were very well-written-, but it just wasn’t my “cup of tea”. I know some who are absolute fans of John Green and his books, so maybe his writing style isn’t “my style”.

The story encompasses two teenagers who both have cancer, fall in love, and one of them eventually passes away (spoiler alert!). It was pretty predictable, but had a fun storyline in regards to the “cute teeny love” that they showcase and the viewpoint of the young girl who has struggled most of her life in-and-out of hospitals. Anyone a fan of John Green? What were your thoughts on this book? I’ve picked up How Bad Do You Want It by Matt Fitzgerald at the library (since sadly my copy that I purchased was left at the hotel in Vegas last year and I’m too stubborn to purchase another one for $12 on Amazon).

I thought it would be fun to see your thoughts on some of the questions below to kick off the weekend! Let me know your preferences and have a great weekend!

If you could only travel to one new destination in your lifetime WHERE would it be?? —> I think mine would probably be the Pacific NW. I’m dying to see Seattle, Bend, the cascades….

What would be the LAST meal you had on Earth?? —> Mac ‘n cheese probably? or garlic bread? or peanut butter cups? all three maybe?!?

Chinese, Italian, or Thai food? —> Italian!

Run in one weather season for the rest of your life? —> definitely Fall. Hands down.

Iced or hot coffee?? —> Probably iced because most places don’t always have the best hot coffee (but iced it always tastes infinitely better)

What is your DREAM everyday schedule?? —> Wake up at 5am, drink coffee & read or catch up on emails/ the news, go out for a run at 6:30am, breakfast and showered by 8:30am, do some more work (ideally from home), run some errands around noon, pilates or yoga or read for a bit, lunch, get some chores done and a bit more work, dinner eaten by 6pm, in bed by 8pm

Hot Cocoa WITH or WITHOUT whipped cream?? —> with. 100% better



I Didn't Do My Long Run And Why I'm OK With It

Happy Monday! I hope you had a great weekend! Ours was filled mainly with chores, but we were able to get out to see the new Mission Impossible movie and it was SO good. It was really long, so be prepared (I think it's 2.5 hours long) and our theater was busy (even with a Saturday matinee!). Has anyone else seen this movie? What did you think? Tom Cruise also did ALL the stunts in the movie, which honestly was mind-boggling to me throughout the entire thing. He must have been in such good shape! 

So let's chat about my long run on Saturday. I had 12 miles at a moderate pace (8:12-8:53) on the schedule. I'm not really sure why I didn't do a cut-back week between last week and this week (I normally never have 2 back-to-back long runs), so I knew going into it that this typically wouldn't happen. I also noticed on my watch that I had 100 days until Vegas (yay)! So, with knowing that I crushed my long run last week and had still quite a bit of time before my race (along with just not feeling "into it"), I wasn't overly stressed. 

I got to 3 miles and had to stop. My breathing was fine, my plantar fasciitis wasn't bothering, but something just felt "off". 

I decided to take a break for a minute, give myself a little bit of a pep talk, and told myself that I could do this. I just crushed every other run this week, so this should be considered 'easy'. I unpaused my garmin and took off again along the dirt path down by the lake. 

5 miles in, I just wasn't feeling it. I couldn't get "into" the zone. 

I started to feel a bit disappointed, but then I felt silly. Why was I putting so much pressure on myself to keep doing this when it just wasn't fun or relaxing today? I still had more than enough time and honestly never felt like I was breathing heavily, so my fitness clearly still is really great. 

I decided to give myself some grace- I stopped my watch at 6 miles and walked it home. 

I'm not disappointed that I didn't get my mileage in. I'm actually pretty proud that I noticed how I was feeling and rather than continue to push through a run that wasn't enjoyable (not because it was 'hard'), I decided that there are other things in my life that I can give my energy to on this day. 

It's just one run. It's not going to make or break my attempt at PR in November. It definitely could have pushed me to an injury or burn-out, which is why I decided to throw in the towel. 

I'll have another opportunity at a long run in 2 weeks, but until then I've mainly got easy miles and a few tempo/speedwork sessions to get in. 

How do you know when to call it quits on a run?

Would you have kept going or thrown in the towel?

Tom Cruise: yay or nay?

Tips For Getting Out For A Early Weekend Morning Run

There's a reason why I switched my long runs from the weekend to Friday mornings because I love to sleep in and have super lazy mornings on the weekend! Last Saturday I managed to get up at 5:30 to get ready for my long run and figured I would share some tips with you that helped me roll out of bed when it was still dark out. 

1. Have your coffee set and get yourself some time to just sit with some fresh coffee before heading outside for your run

2. Have something fun scheduled later in the day to look forward to. 

Kitty cuddles- so worth waking up early to run!

3. Look at the weather and know that if you wait longer, it will either get worse OR you can enjoy the beautiful day knowing that your run is already out of the way.

4. Put together a new playlist or have a new podcast that you save for your weekend early morning runs.

5. Possibly see if you can persuade someone to either make you breakfast or meet you for breakfast after you're done with your run. Bloody Mary after a long run? Yes. Please!

6. Fit it into a race that's near-by. Everything almost always more fun in a race environment, so why not? Maybe you'll even get a medal out of it!

7. Look forward to having the rest of the day completely free AND you'll be energized to get something productive done. Hello chores that I've been meaning to do for the past 3 weeks...

8. Arrange to meet up with other runners early. There's nothing more motivating that knowing that someone else is also up early and waiting for you!

How do you get yourself out of the door early on the weekends?

What do you have on-tap for today? -> I've got 6 recovery miles at an easy pace!

Tips for getting through those long runs

Long runs. We sometimes love 'em and sometimes hate 'em. I used to really reallly dislike them. I would actually stress myself out over the fact that I had a long run to do this week, until I found a few ways to make the mileage seem less daunting. Surprisingly, I actually wake up EARLY on my long run days so excited to cover the distance. 

• Break up the mileage into something more reasonable. For me, 2.5 miles seems really manageable. So I would do the same 2.5 mile stretch out-and-back several times. It could seem boring, but it was actually really nice to know that after 5 miles I would be back at my car and able to switch up my gear (if needed) or grab some fuel or reassess. Having a route that you're confident with and shorter makes it both safer and easier to concur. 

• Tell yourself it's only 'x' amount of miles 'x' amount of times. I know that 5 miles for me seems like a piece of cake during marathon training or 3 miles during half marathon training is do-able. If I'm running 15 miles that day, I'll just keep repeating to myself that it's just 5 mile stretches repeated 3 times or if I have 9 miles on the schedule, it's just 3 mile stretches repeated 3 times. Use that marker after each stretch to reset your mind and just focus on that shorter mileage. 

• Do your run both indoors and outdoors. I did this when I was training for my downhill run because I needed to alter my elevation profile to mimic the long downhill stretches of the race. I would begin my run outside for a few miles, hop on the treadmill inside, then finish it up outside for the final few miles. It gives your mind a break and something to look forward to on the various profile changes. 

• Try a loop trail. Loops are a great way for longer runs to seem less monotonous. You'll get to see a lot of various scenary before you hit your starting spot and do it all again. I would do a 3 mile loop and see different things every time I went by (or see the same things/ people and use that as a reassurance). 

• Vary your paces. Having a plan for your long run days are a must (at least for me)- you have a plan for race day, so why shouldn't you practice the same for long runs?! When I get really bored or tired (especially on the treadmill), I like to play with my paces. I'll run at a faster pace and try to hold it for several minutes then drop the pace back down. I may also throw in a faster finish (say, around goal pace), to make those miles fly by and also seem more challenging. 

Enjoy those long runs! I know when I'm not training for something, I really crave a good long run (sometimes). 

What techniques do you use to get through a long run?

Long weekend fun!

Hellloooo Tuesday! Going back to work after a long weekend is SO tough. Luckily, my weekend included lots of rest, relaxation, and running. Friday (rest day for me) started off with a lunch date with my person at our favorite spot (Winonas - a MUST if you are ever in Steamboat) for some buffalo chicken salads!

Then we made homemade pizza for dinner (perfect for carbo-loading for my long run in the morning) and it was amazing! Forgot to take a picture (I think I devoured it too quickly ;) ).

Saturday morning I woke up at 4:45 to get my 16 miles in and it was pouring out. I started with 6 easy outside then headed on the treadmill for 7 at just under marathon goal pace (8:57 with some downhill training) and finished it up with 3 outside (in-between showers finally). 

Since it was a total wash of a day, we relaxed at home (luckily there was a Harry Potter marathon on and we mayyyy have watched 2 or 3 of them!). I made the most AMAZING lasagna from Run Fast, Eat Slow and even made homemade marinara sauce (definitely a game-changer; also added in a parmesan rind that I had lying around and it made the sauce extra cheesy). 

On Sunday, the weather finally felt like Spring (mid-60s) and we headed out to camp! We half-expected to arrive to the campsite (about 30 minutes away from home) and for it to be full because of the Holiday weekend, but only 2 of the 11 sites were filled (and stayed that way the entire night)!

I got in a 3-mile run between leaving our place before Alex left in the car (got in 1.15 miles with Stella) until he picked us up on our way out there and then finished up my run after we set-up our site. It was SO peaceful out there!

We did a short hike out Teepee Creek and ended up hitting snow (I wish more trails were dry)! The part that we did hike was beautiful and with no one else around- so serene. 

Since it's still mud-season here, Stella's paws turned into a dark brown mess. Luckily, she found a snow pile to plop down and cool-off in!

I think one of my favorite parts of camping has to be how good food tastes out here! We had some chopped up corn on the cob and sausage for dinner and had to follow that up with smores! They were soooo good. I'm cutting out sugar now until after my race in 12 days and can't wait until I can have another smore. 

The temperatures Sunday night dropped down into the low 30's and it was COLD! I think I wore my hat all night and luckily had mittens on the next morning until it started warming up.

We got home early Monday morning and after cleaning for a bit (Alex's dad is visiting this coming weekend, so we had to clean everything and make sure his room was good to go), I headed out to get a run and strength training session in. 

One sneaker on, one sneaker off- it's how I do.

I did an easy 3 miles (the taper is kinda really nice in the beginning) then 25 minutes of a full-body strength session before grabbing some flowers and running a few other errands in town. 

I got straight to gardening when I got home (first ever garden by myself #adulting) and added in some rocks that we got on our hike Sunday! Hopefully, they stay alive for most of the summer....

I need to add-in a few more rocks when I find them, but I think it looks pretty cute! 

For dinner, I made Paleomg's Bacon Chorizo Chipotle Smothered Meatloaf (one of Alex's favorite meals) and it was amazing!

That's my long weekend recap! Now back to work and looking forward to next weekend already :)

Do you normally like to get your long runs done in one shot or break them up?

Favorite home-cooked meal?

Ever tried making your own marinara sauce? What are some things you like to add in it?