PR's and Sliced Fingers

So this weekend was a success. Although I got up on Sunday to pouring rain and the overwhelming urge to just hide under the covers in the dark and sleep forever, I got up and started the pre race poop inducing diet. I rolled out of bed and began food prep. I had 2.5 cups of unsweetened apple sauce, 1 protein shake, 1 banana and a powerbar endurance drink. And it did the trick. Then I headed out to pick up a friend and head to the city for the race.

As soon as we started driving the rain started really coming down. By the time we got the city it was around 47 degrees and coming down hard. Now, because I don't run in the rain, well basically ever, I don't have any rain gear, so I just went with shorts, running tank and a spandex type pull over. I also found a nice rain poncho that I picked up at my last race, so I was able to keep somewhat dry before the race started. But that all went to shit once the gun went off. So off I went.

I was feeling pretty good and by mile 6 I stopped being pissed about the rain and decided to just accept that it was going to be a wet cold 13.2 miles. By mile 8 I knew I was moving above pace, but I also know how my body reacts to 2 laps around central park, by the time I hit the "Big Bend" a second time I feel it. But this time I didn't. I think I was so cold and so wet that all I wanted was to finish as fast as possible. So I kept on trucking. Once I hit mile 11 I started to take off a bit but reminded myself how the wheels almost fell off halfway through mile 12 when I did that. So I reigned it back in for a bit.

At mile 12 I decided why the hell not, and picked it up. I had to stop right before mile 12 to tie my shoe so I figured it was ok to move it a bit for the remaining 1.2 miles. And I did it! I crossed the finish line at 1:56:31, that is approx 4 minutes faster than my half marathon at the end of January, so a Sunday success for sure!!

After the race I came home, soaked in a hot shower and then planted myself on the couch for a nice afternoon nap.

This morning, I got up to some tight leg, but surprisingly not as bad as they normally are. After a recovery swim and 1.5 hours of spin, I am back on the couch and ready to call it a night.

As for the sliced finger, today I decided that in my chicken fajita salad, I needed fresh salsa, so before spin I decided to cut up the tomatoes for the salsa. Now as I was slicing the tomatoes I thought to myself "I have to watch when I get to the end piece of each tomato, that the knife doesn't slip on the skin and end up in my finger". Well 3 tomatoes in, exactly that happened. And the weirdest part is that I could see it happening in slow motion but I didn't move my finger. So now I have a bum pointer finger and has a distinct pulse in it. What a spaz, right? Oh well, nothing a little cap nap won't cure. Off to doze....

I hope you all had great Mondays!!

Why does this week feel so long?

Friday's post take two...I posted this on Friday and then came back today and it was gone, so here is Friday's post

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So I think it is because of the new job, but really this week has taken FOREVER! But thank god Friday is here. And I plan on doing nothing this weekend! And by nothing, I mean I am going to go shopping and run the More Half Marathon. So really the nothing means that I am not training on Saturday like I normally do. But I plan on subbing in some hardcore clothes shopping for new work clothes, in lieu of my weekly long ride. Score!

Last night was a great idea. Tuna steaks, sauteed spinach and mushrooms and some wine spritzers. A perfect way to relax, but now I am tired! As in I am trying my hardest to not sleep at my keyboard right now. So tonight is going to be nice and lowkey. Just me, the pooch and some sushi. But first I need to get in a 30 min swim, some biking and running and a grocery trip to pick up my stuff-your-face pre race day. Then I am planting myself on the couch and hell, I may even just sleep there!

Well that is it for me for this week. All in all, the week was a success! Now let's hope for some PRs this weekend!

Takin it eaaasy, Takin it eaaaaasy...

So Thursday is here and I just got out of work and I can't seem to get myself to do another work out! Yesterday, I again attempted the 4:40am wake up for my 2:10 Z1/Z2 run that I had to make up and alas, I couldn't get my tired ass out of bed, so I pushed it until after work. Now, usually when I do that, it means that I will again push to the following morning, but last night I made it happen. I ran 30 min on a treadmill while waiting for my running partner then heading out for a 1:40 run up the Hudson River. So I ended up at about 12.2 miles with a heart rate of 166, which is 1 over the top of Z1 for me, so I was happy. And then I headed home for a fantastic pasta dish, of fresh linguine, asparagus, artichokes, ham in a lite cheese sauce. And I know lite cheese sauce sounds like an oxymoron, but the bf actually made it with margarine and skim milk, so I am calling it lite. That's my story and I am sticking to it!

This morning started at 5:25am because, me, not thinking, agreed to sub a 45 min sculpting class. Well I got the gym around 6am and I only had one student! At least I didn't get no-showed, right? After teaching I hopped in the pool for a 30 min steady swim and then hit the steam room before going to work.

Now I have a really quick ride and run planned for tonight, but honestly between last night and this morning, I am beat! So instead I will head to a friends house for some tuna steaks and vino!

Try not to be too jealous! ;-)

Hump Day.....

So it turns out Hump Day is not so bad when you are enjoying your work week. So they bought it, they think I am cool. Well maybe not cool, but they are tolerating me for now! The one thing I think that shocks them most is the amount of food I consume in a day. It is so hard to explain to people when you first meet them that you may end up making them nauseous if they try to keep track of your daily food consumption! But they will get used to it I am sure!

As for work outs, I have devised a new plan since I am not sure if I can work out during lunch yet. I drop my clothes off at the gym on the way to work so I have to go to the gym after work at least to get them. Which in turn makes me feel like I have to work out! And if I don't pick up my stuff they break my lock and toss my shoes and clothes. Ta Daaaa! Fool Proof! That is until you read the blog post about how I lost my gym clothes!

So yesterday I did at easy 30 min ZR on the bike followed by a 45 min Z1/Z2 Run. I decided to stay closer to Z2 and averaged around a 10:30 mile. I think I could have gotten it down to 10:15 or 10:20 because I hovered really low in Z1 for the first 15, but I can perfect that next time!

Other than that, nothing huge going on here. Just doing a lot of learning at the new job, trying to only consume healthy food and working hard to get some more pounds off.

Be back again tomorrow! Happy Hump Day!

Today I Am The New Kid

So today is the first day of the new job, I am the new kid at school. As we all know, this can go one of two ways. Everyone likes the new kid because they are new and no one knows whether they really are cool or not, so everyone assumes they are cool. Or everyone decides that there is no way the new kid is cool and dislikes them right off the bat. I am hoping that they can sense my coolness when I walk in the door, so it will be smooth sailing from then on! We shall see.

Now, let me catch you up on my week. On Wednesday after my final lunch with my former co workers, I headed home and got in a ridiculously cloudy pool and did about 50 minutes of speed work, headed home and got on the bike for some over/unders, then took the pooch for a nice long walk to meet the bf at the soccer fields and then home for dinner. On Thursday, although I wanted to sleep in, I got up at 9am for some Running over/unders. Now this was really the first week I got to test drive my new HR zones. I am not sure if it was because I was inside, but I didn't get to go much faster. I am going to test them outdoors tomorrow and see what's up! Then I headed home, grabbed the pooch and off we went for another walk. She is getting so much better at focusing on walking!

Friday was a day to shop! And shop we did. We picked up a wine bar from West Elm, then went over to Crate and Barrel to buy some things to decorate it, think pitchers, martini glasses and a shaker. The we hit up Home Depot for new tiki torches, a hanging basket of pansies and some tomato plants. All in all a very successful, yet expensive trip!

Saturday morning, it was time to buckle down. I headed out around 6:30am for my 6 hour bike ride. I rode about 4 hours outside with a friend then came back and got on the trainer for another two, then completed my 35min ZR T run. And let me tell you, I was tired. And for the first time, during my work out I was consistently hungry. I ate a peanut butter sandwich before I started a powerbar during, a south beach bar when I got back and got on the trainer and then I inhaled the rest of my turkey sandwich when I was done, only to still be hungry enough to eat a chicken sandwich about an hour later! I guess almost 7 hours will do that to you!

That about sums up my weekend, today is a spin/ swim day and then I start to slow it down for my half marathon this weekend! Now, I have to get ready for my first day!

Have a great Monday and fingers crossed that they think I am a cool kid!

Let the Vacation Begin

So today as of 2pm I am no longer employed at my former place of work. It is just such a weird feeling. To be sitting here and not worrying about tomorrow or the next day! So I have the rest of the week off to hang out and then I start my new gig on Monday.

So seeing it was my last day, I decided to sleep in, and by sleep in, I mean I stayed in bed until 5 minutes before I usually leave my house, got up and dressed, sans shower (don't judge me!) and went to work. While I was there I beat my high score on Bejeweled Blitz and totally cleaned out my inbox. Then the whole team headed to Rosa Mexicana for my farewell lunch. And then, I skipped home. For real!

Once home, since it is gorgeous out, I decided to go get my swim out of the way. I decided to switch up for the shorter swim I would have to do on Friday because I wanted to get home and read on the patio before taking a 2nd stab at my bike drills. See the problem is, all this week, my blood sugar seems to be getting super low either before or during a workout and it takes food and about 20 minutes for it to go back to normal. Strange right? If anyone has any thoughts on that let me know.

So here is how the swim went:

Warmup:
900 continuous @ TT+10 sec
Main Set:
10 X (Best sustainable repeats of: 100,on TT+10 sec)
3 X 200 pull on TT+10 sec swam at TT+5 sec

It was a speed set and I was able to maintain the same speed for all 100's but lost it a bit on the last 200. But all in all I am feeling good in the pool.

Then it was home to read on the patio with the pooch, eat some cheez-its and now I am going to hop on the bike and try again.

Well have a great night and enjoy the weather while it lasts!

Hallelujah….Hallelujah…

It is finally happening! I am losing weight. I got on the scale today and closed my eyes and thought please let it be a good day! And it was! I lost about 4 pounds in 2 weeks! I am very excited. And this can only mean that my body is now officially in losing mode. Sign me up! I am about 4 lbs away from last years’ weight and need to get rid of a bit more to hit the goal weight. Buuuut, I have more time to do it!

Ok, now that I am done doing the Snoopy Happy Dance, let’s recap on this past week! I was actually away in NOLA for a few days on business, got back, had one day tired day of work and then headed right to Baltimore for an Orioles game with some friends. So I haven’t been home and let’s just say the work outs have been minimal, but I had a nice time and it is always good to get that out of the way before the bulk of race season kicks into gear, that’s for sure.

So this week so far has consisted of the usually 2 spins classes and a recovery swim. Just a quick 30 min swim, which was nice. I actually decided to do my own swim since I sometimes get a bit bored just swimming lap after lap, so I alternated 200 pull with 200 free until the 30 minutes were up and it helped to make the time fly.

Today, which is almost my last day at my job, I am going out to lunch with a friend and then off to the gym for a 1:20 Z1 run I missed on Sunday. I am interested in seeing how my body feels in the new Zones. Then tonight I have 1 hour of Under/Over’s on the bike followed by a Z1/Z2 T ride, with the first mile in Z2. Then I will collapse!

Tomorrow is my last day at my current position and then I have Thursday and Friday off to relax and get a few things done before I start the new job on Monday. I am very excited for the new changes in my life and I can’t wait to see where this next phase will take me! Now it is off for some Mexican food!

Here are some fun photos of Camden Yards:

I will take that PR With a Side of Stiff Quads and Sore Hamstrings!

Saturday was quite the race day! I got to registration about an hour before the start, got my number and took a seat on a bench near the port-o-juans. I figured, why not? I would probably spend most of the hour in one anyway! So about 20 min before the start I dropped off my bag and started my jog to the start. It was quite the festive race. Because it was the Scotland Run everyone was donning kilts and all other Scottish garb. I personally went for an all black ensemble with my fancy black sneakers! Seriously, they look like I should be part of some Jazz dance troupe!

So around 10am the race began, 1 loop around central park, which meant 1 fight with the Big Bend in 75 degree weather (I so did not prepare for that!). So off I went, and within about ten minutes I realized just how dehydrated I was. There was no saliva in my mouth at all to the point where at mile three I tried to eat some blocks and I couldn't keep a whole one in my mouth because I couldn't swallow! But I had to keep going. Coach's plan was to go out at 8:45 and settle into an 8:50 pace. When I hit mile two at just under 17:00 I knew that that was no longer my plan. So I kept on going, climbing and quickly short stepping down the hills. At one point I thought it might be time to slow down, so I did, or at least I thought I did. I kept thinking "Man it feels good to slow down", but then I would check my watch and see that I was going faster!

By mile 5 I actually felt great, dehydrated, but great. So I kept on pushing. As I hit mile 6 my breathing was so screwy that I involuntarily starting grunting while running. Now that is a new one for me, but then I saw the finish, passed the last two people in front of me, for posterity of course! And finished feeling like my lungs could burst right out of my chest at 52:08. That is 8:24 miles (sorry coach!).

And now my legs are making me pay! And funny thing, my coach is too! Since I am racing way faster this year and above my avg Zone 1 HR, my coach decided to bring my training heart rates up, so everything will be a bit harder from here on out! Although not fun, it will be worth it if I can get faster!

Other than that, the rest of the weekend was not so crazy. I went to my parents for the annual Easter Egg Hunt, yes we still have one even though all of the kids in the family are over 25 years old! And then we had dinner, some wine and good conversation. We headed back early to take the dog for a walk and then it was off to bed.

Today is the usual 6am spin, 6pm swim and 7:30 spin. I also threw in a 20 min run with the pup as well to get her more used to being outside now that it is getting nice out. And then tomorrow it is off to NOLA for my last business trip with this company. I will be there until Thursday but will try to keep this updated.

Have a Happy Monday!

10k Saturday

So I made it through the week! And now I can share my good news! I got a new job! Woo hooooo! I gave notice on Thursday and will start on April 19th. What a relief! So there, that is my secret!

Onto some training news. I tried to stay off my foot most of the week. It was a light week anyway so I figured I could make that kind of executive decision and I did! So seeing that yesterday I had the day off, I took the entire morning to do some spring cleaning around this place and then hit the treadmill and pool. They were super short workouts, but they did the trick and were a good test for my foot. I am feeling ok but I think I am still going to try to be on the safe side and head to the orthopedic dr next week as well.

So today is the Scotland Run 10k. I am a bit tired right now, but I still have a good hour and a half until race time. I have a pace goal of 8:50 miles for the entire race, I think it is doable, I am just hoping this week off hasn't screwed me! It's time to test my limits! I will check back in at the end of the weekend.

I am off to enjoy the beautiful weather, I hope you do too!