Cross training

Less than a month till the Air Force Marathon! Almost time to see if all this training will pay off. I'm hoping for a 4:45, cutting 4 minutes of my previous PR. If not, I have the Marine Corps Marathon 2 months later.

And speaking of all this training, I added a little cross training this week with crossfit. I'm sure you've heard all the hype about this hot trend, but I want to incorporate it a bit so I can build a little muscle. It was definitely hard. Each day we did some weight lifting - bench press, dead lift and front squats, along with a warmup and a workout that carried each day. It lasts about an hour and between that and a run in the morning, I've been beat! But it's getting a little better, and I'm enjoying it so I'm gonna stick it out for a little. At least until I get a full-time job here.

Now because of all this extra working out, I've also been extra hungry. My new addiction are these handmade popsicles here that are so tasty! In just over a week that I've been here, I've had 3 - blood orange basil, chocolate pluff mud porter and peaches n cream. Yum! And of course me and the hubs hit up Sunday brunch. Huevos Rancheros from The Rarebit. *drool* crispy tortillas, black bean puree, salsa, avocado, and eggs. Okay, I need the extra workouts to balance out this delish South Carolina food!

And we're still chugging along with our new found gardening hobby. It's only been a week, so I don't know yet if we're any good at it, but here's to hoping!

Logging the miles

It's been awhile since I last wrote, mostly because I've been writing so much in the training I'm in that I couldn't bring myself to do it on my personal time, too, but I have some running success to talk about.

Last weekend I logged a 20-miler and felt pretty good during it. I was very pleasantly surprised at being able to push through it, even with it being 90° and humid. So, obviously, it wasn't a great time that I did it in, but sometimes finishing is the real victory.

 Nothing to see here with the time, just be impressed that I did it

I'm not going to act like there wasn't a motivation issue involved though. It took everything I had to get out of bed

The week following I did a 9-miler in 84 minutes, an 8-miler in 73 minutes and a 6-miler in 55 minutes. Those are good times for me, so I'm proud of them, haha!

I took a bit of a beating after that 20-miler and had to tape myself together

Then this past Saturday I had an 18-miler, and even though I pushed through it, I wanted to quit at just 2.5 miles in. You know it's going to be a loooong run when that happens. But I allowed myself a .25-.50 mile walking break every 3 miles and that made it easier to handle. At least I can say I made it through.

So, quite a few miles have been logged and there's a 22-miler looming ahead of me for this Friday. I think I can! I think I can!

Oh yea, less than 2 months till the Air Force Marathon!

Obviously, when there's been a lot of running, there's also been a lot of food. Here are a couple of my recent recipes:

Avocado chickpea tacos
(8 WW points for 3 tacos, with 1/2 cup chickpeas, and 1/4 avocado)

- taco shells
-1 can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
-avocado
- any other 0 point toppings you want - lettuce, salsa, tomatoes, etc.

This one is so simple and so tasty. The original recipe's link isn't working, but it came from Vegetarian Times.

1. Mash up the avocado and dump the chickpeas in. 

2. Don't mash the chickpeas, just stir to coat with the avocado.

3. Scoop into taco shells and add extra fixings.
Too easy.

Just to mix things up, I also put this mixture on a sandwich using Panera's asiago cheese bread. Both versions are winners.

And speaking of Panera. Their new soba noodle shrimp salad is a must try. It's chilled shrimp, soba noodles, sesame seeds, on top of spinach and dressing. An amazing meal to refuel with after a long run.

So, the rest of this week will look something like this:

Tuesday - 9
Wednesday - 6
Thursday - rest
Friday - 22
Saturday - 4
Sunday - rest

It's going to get a little tricky after that because of a work trip, but I will adapt and overcome!

Not every runner is elite

I think I've said this before, but I want everyone who is thinking about starting to run to know that not everyone can be Kara Goucher, Shalane Flanagan or Ryan Hall. Sometimes you just have to be proud of yourself for getting out of bed in the morning and hitting the pavement/treadmill.

Take me for instance. It takes me 4 hours, 49 minutes and 27 seconds to move my body for 26.2 miles. And yes, that IS running the WHOLE time. And while that time doesn't sound good to a Boston Qualifier (who needs a 3:35 just to be eligible to register at my age) I am so proud of my times that I tattooed them to the back of my leg. I figure, good or bad, they're mine.

It doesn't include my most recent time from April, yet.

No matter what someone's time is though, most runners can share tips, tricks and stories that can relate to everyone. What they eat before (molten lava pancake), during (GU) and after (everything) a long run, how they psyche themselves up for a race, and how much they all enjoy a rest day.

So, while some people were recently talking about how they can run a 10-miler in an hour flat (my PR is 1:31), or do 3 miles at a 6:30 pace (I can't even do a quarter mile at that pace) realize that your running can still inspire someone else. I was doing a 7-mile run the other morning where I did one warmup mile at 11 min, 5 miles at 9:13, then another 11 min cool down mile, and even though it would seem so slow to some people, someone came up to me and said they wished they could run as long as me. I actually inspired someone! Awe *blush*

So, no matter your pace or distance, run on with your bad self!

Now if you'll excuse me, I have a 14-mile run with my name on it.

The week to come

I don't have any races coming up until the end of the month, but I do have a PT test that I need to be ready for next week.

I got a nice, easy four mile run in this morning and if the week goes as planned, I should be logging about  42 miles between tomorrow and next Sunday. Training is definitely picking up.

Monday - 5 miles
Tuesday - 5
Wednesday - 7
Thursday - 4
Friday - rest
Saturday - 7
Sunday - 14

On the Run

I'm back home from work, and with that will soon start marathon training!  Our next marathon is the Air Force Marathon in Ohio in September, so it's time to start logging those miles!

I was able to fit in a few workouts while I was at work, lets call it cross training. Besides the PT test and the land navigation that I already mentioned, we also did some Army combatives, where you learn different fighting moves for self defense and practice on each other, and we also did a 2-mile ruck march, with a 40 pound ruck sack.  Then last night I did a nice, easy 6-miler that felt really good. So, I've been staying active even though I haven't been posting. (I was busy!..and had limited cell service)

I got a new app on my phone that is supposed to be like the Runner's World Smart Coach app that I used to use (they don't make that app for my phone, boo!!) And as of right now, it looks like my next couple days look like this:

Friday: 5 miles
Saturday: 6 miles
Sunday: 11 miles
Monday: 4 miles
Tuesday: rest

After that, I am going on a little road trip, so I'll probably have to deviate from the running plan a bit (jump rope anyone?)

Also, you know how I told you about those Starbucks instant coffees? Well, I just found out yesterday that they have different flavors! I see my new addiction.

Caramel instant coffee, then the refreshers are Very Berry Hibiscus and Cool Lime and they caffeinated, as well

And I'll leave you with this:

It's so hard being a kitten.