Monkey Marathon Recovery

I had a blast running the Flying Monkey Marathon last weekend!  Can you tell?!

 

Because it was a long training run, I had to get my butt back into gear quickly this week.  Here’s what my “recovery” looked like…

Monday:

5 Miles

PiYo Hardcore On The Floor

The cutest shirts arrived at Fleet Feet!

I made this awesome Sweet Potato Pomegranate Salad for dinner.

Tuesday:

6 miles with The Breakfast Club

They brought me my favorite cookies to celebrate the Monkey!

I ran a few more miles and did PiYo Drench.  This is my new favorite PiYo workout!

I received this email and had a little dance party for one in my kitchen!

I pulled some of my Vegetarian Quinoa Chili out of the freezer for dinner.  I think it’s even better reheated!

Wednesday:

Started the day with breakfast at the Perch with the hubs.

And had a solid 10 mile run.  I felt great especially considering it was 3 days post-marathon!

I made White Chocolate Peanut Butter Crunch Bars to take to Thanksgiving!  Big THANKS to my friend Corrie for sharing her recipe!!!  They’re so good and actually pretty healthy. I’ll post the recipe shortly:)

Thanksgiving Thursday:

I ran 11 miles.  5 of those were with this group for the Boulevard Bolt (my fave Thanksgiving tradition)!

Friday:

7 miles with my husband.  We both had heavy legs from lots of running and took it nice and easy:)

And now I’m prepped for Saturday’s long run.  My plan calls for 18-20 miles.

 

How was your Thanksgiving race?

What was the best thing you ate on Thanksgiving?  Mashed Sweet Potatoes

What’s your favorite workout DVD?  PiYo is the first time I’ve tried workout videos.

#choosejoy

 

Flying Monkey Marathon

I was really nervous for this race!  The Flying Monkey Marathon takes place on the road through Percy Warner Park.  It’s really hilly and the race forecast called for 100% chance of storms.  Here’s how it played out…

I didn’t taper for the race.  My coach (Mark Hadley at Maximum Performance Running) used it as a training run for an upcoming ultra.

Saturday:

I ran 8 easy paced miles.
Packet pickup (love the Hatch Show Print race poster!)

Pasta dinner

Sunday Race Day:

5am wakeup, banana bread and coffee,

And got ready for the race

I hid in the car to stay dry until the start.

Off and on rain for the entire race and an 8am start time.

I never really looked at my pace.  This was a training run for me and I just tried my best to stay conversational and run by effort.  That was easier said than done on these hills…

7200 feet of elevation change with lots of fun signs along the way

The water stops were run by local running stores and clubs.  It was wonderful to see friends at each stop!  THANK YOU to every volunteer that braved the bad weather!!!!

Here are some of Jobie Williams’ pictures from the Fleet Feet water stop.

I was also blessed to have some company during the race.  My husband joined me from miles 11-14 and my friends Corrie and Christi Beth helped me get my butt up the big mile 18 hill.

The hubs snapped these pics during his run with me 🙂

Because I had been running conservatively, I felt really strong.  Around mile 20, I decided to step it up a little and had a strong kick to the finish.  I was soaked, but didn’t care.  I was so happy to finish!

Results: 2nd Overall Female (3:54)  

You can tell I was shocked when I went up to receive my award 🙂  I surprised myself!

Nutrition:

Gu 15 minutes before the start, mile 7, 14, 21

Cocogo in my handheld and Gatorade on course.  Use code: JENCHOOSESJOY (all caps) for 10% off at Cocogo.com!

Chocolate protein shake immediately after finishing.

And, some Monkey Cake!!!  The post-race was AMAZING!  Obviously, I was too excited about the cake and forgot to take a picture.

The whole race was really well organized with plenty of water stops and support.  Percy Warner Park is a gorgeous place to run.  Thanks to Monkey Trent for all of his hard work!!!  The whole day went smoothly.

When Jason asked me what I wanted to eat after the race, the answer was easy.  I had been dreaming of chips and queso the whole time!

My prize monkey had a front row seat for the car ride.  BEST RACE AWARD EVER!

And at dinner we celebrated….cheers!!

Did you race or long run this weekend?  Share!

Do you use races as training runs?  If so, do you start back with your training immediately after the race?  I’m supposed to get back at it tomorrow…fingers crossed.

What’s your favorite post-race food?  I always want Mexican food…it must be a salt thing.

My monkey needs a name!!!!  Do you have any ideas?

#choosejoy

The Friday Five

1.  The Asics Storm Shelter Jacket.  I bought this jacket at Fleet Feet a few weeks ago and wasn’t sure how often I’d really wear it.  I have lived in it!  Even through the recent polar vortex (slight exaggeration), I’ve worn it and stayed warm.

Seam-sealed, fully-lined, Waterproof zipper, Removable hood with adjusters, Zippered body vents, 360 degree 3M reflectivity, Thumbholes on Lycra wrist gaiters.  

I bought mine in white, but I didn’t know that pink was available…so cute!

2.  You Fresh Naturals Coco-Nut Butter– This is my favorite nut butter!

– Paleo Friendly
– Gluten Free
– Non GMO
– Vegan (except the added protein Coco-Nut Butters)
– Contain No preservatives or artificial ingredients
– Free of wheat
– Naturally sweetened

As you can see, I keep my pantry stocked!  If I had to choose, Maple Vanilla is my favorite flavor!

3.  I picked up my new Ultra Dirtbag Hoodie from The North Face today and I LOVE it!!!

4.  I’m getting so excited for Christmas!!

5.  Stop whining.  Monkey’s don’t whine.  The Flying Monkey Marathon is this Sunday…eek!!  I’m using it as a training run for an upcoming ultra, but it’s such a tough course and I’m getting nervous.  PLUS, there’s 100% chance of thunderstorms!  The RD sent this email today…

Thanks to Valerie Fowler for these soggy monkeys…

#choosejoy

Fleet Feet Race Team and Some Crazy Skin Advice

First things first:  It’s Hug A Runner Day!

Please observe the proper etiquette…

I started off the day with a crepe date at The Perch,

and then headed over to Percy Warner Park to run the 11.2 mile loop with Malin and Laurie.  Their great company made the hilly miles fly by!

Aside from their great company, the coolest part of our run was getting to see the frost flowers!!  They’re so pretty and from what I read, they’re pretty rare.

I read this list: 25 Signs You Drink Too Much Wine.  My favorite: #4.  Olivia Pope is my spirit animal!

Thanks to Beth Meadows for that list!  Beth is a super fast runner, cool chick, and I love her blog: Ultra Marathon of Life.

Exciting News!!  I signed my contract to run on the Fleet Feet Racing Team for another year…woo hoo!  Roy also signed his contract today!!!  He has run a bazillion ultras and marathons.  I love these guys!!

To celebrate, I tried our new Saladworks for dinner.  Nothing says celebration like a salad…doh.  It just worked out that way.  Anyways, I do love a big as yo face salad and they didn’t disappoint.

Two thumbs up…I’ll definitely return!  The butternut squash soup was especially good:)

And now for some crazy skincare advice:  I visited my dermatologist this week.  I’m having trouble with chapped dry skin around my mouth and nose from running in the cold.  Her advice…Head & Shoulders Shampoo.  She said to massage the shampoo onto the dry areas, rinse and wash as usual.  Yes, I’m putting dandruff shampoo on my face…I’ll keep you posted on how this one works out!

Lastly, a little nugget of wisdom.  ALWAYS be kind to yourself!

Have you ever seen frost flowers?

What’s your favorite type of wine?  I especially love Champagne and Pinot Noir!

What are your go-to salad toppings?  I end up making a taco salad…beans, corn, tofu, tortilla chips, etc…

Do you have any dry skin advice?  Share!

#choosejoy

The Friday Five

1.  The Andy Cohen Diaries: A Deep Look at a Shallow Year If you share my Real Housewives guilty pleasure, you’ll love this book.  It’s escapism at it’s finest and Andy is hi-LAR-ious!

2.  Reusable Produce Bags– I think that most of us are in the habit of taking our reusable grocery bags with us to the market.  But, do you still use the plastic produce bags?  I bought a bunch of these Flip and Tumble produce bags and take them with me to the grocery store.  They’re machine washable and so much better for the environment than those plastic bags.

3.  Veronicas Health Crunch– I discovered Veronica’s at a farmer’s market while vacationing in Seaside.  I stocked up and then continued to order it online.  Now it’s available at Fleet Feet Nashville and it’s SO GOOD!  Almonds, walnuts, pecans, pumpkin seeds, dried cranberries, and unsweetened shredded coconut lightly sweetened with honey.  100% natural, non-GMO, and gluten-free.  I promise you will LOVE it!

4.  Nike Dir-fit Wool Women’s Running Hoodie– It’s a soft wool outside combined with the dri-fit technology inside.  I bought mine in Chicago when I was there for the marathon and I’ve been living in it.  Fleet Feet Nashville is also carrying in.  It snaps instead of zips and has thumb holes.  One of my favorite features:  “dropped hem for enhanced coverage” aka it covers your bum.  I don’t like short tops when I’m wearing running tights.

5.  Pope Francis’ 10 Steps to Being Happy

1. “Live and let live.”

2. “Be giving of yourself to others.”

3. “Proceed calmly” in life.

4. Have “a healthy sense of leisure.”

5.  “Sundays should be holidays.”

6. “Create dignified jobs for young people.”

7. “Respect and take care of nature.”

8. “Stop being negative.”

9. “Respect others’ beliefs.”

10.  “Work for peace.”

#choosejoy

The Russian Returns & Leading A Group Run

Monday:

6 Miles with girlfriends

Followed by an Orange Theory Fitness Class.  It was strength day…my favorite!

I baked a batch of Chewy Oatmeal Scotchies as a thank you gift for my physical therapist…I’ll type up the recipe this week!

I met my husband for dinner at J’s.  We shared the grilled artichokes,

and a flatbread,

before heading to the Trail Running Film Festival by Rainshadow Running.

It was a sold out show here in Nashville.  Check the link above to see if it’s coming to your city!  The films, the courses they cover, and the runners, left me wanting to push the limits of my distance running.  Truly awe inspiring!

I loved seeing all of the Ultra Dirtbag Swag!

Tuesday:

This week’s track workout was The Russian!  When I searched for images before sending the workout to our group, this crazy guy in the bottom left appeared and cracked me up/ scared me a little.  Perfect for The Russian!  Rayna even brought her own hat to the track…my friends rock!

My workout:

4.5 mile warm-up/ strides

3 x 300m (1:07 goal) with 60 second recovery between (My actual splits: 1:08, 1:08, 1:07, 1:07, 1:06, 1:07, 1:07, 1:07, 1:03)

800m recovery jog between each set

Repeat 3 times

1 mile cool down

After track, I headed over to The Juice Bar for my favorite green smoothie.

The Flying Monkey Marathon poster preview came out.  Fear is setting in.

I delivered the thank you cookies:)

These are a few of my favorite things…

And made a new recipe for dinner: Autumn Wild Rice with Kale and Caramelized Sweet Potato.   We loved it!  If y’all want the recipe, I’ll type it up:)

Lastly, here in Nashville we’re getting ready for Spring Marathon Training…can you believe it?!  Fleet Feet has a huge training group and they’ve been organizing pace leaders.

Here are some Guidelines For Leading A Group Run:

1.  Know the route using a GPS or mapping tool

2.  Outline the distance for the run and make sure it aligns with the goal of the group.  If your group has runners doing several distances, know good points for runners to break off to hit their desired mileage.

3.  Have current CPR and First Aid Certifications

4.  If you have a large group, determine whether you need a permit to run.  Try staggering the group start times to possibly avoid the need for a permit.

5.  For a large group, recruit key pace leaders and help runners identify their appropriate group.

6.  Setup water stations along the route.  Make sure to have enough water to support the size of the group.

7.  Designate a back of the pack runner/ sweeper who will carry a cellphone.  They can insure that all runners finish the training run and can call if they come upon an emergency.

8.  Make sure you have a name and emergency contact information for each runner.

9.  Have a sign in/out sheet for each group run.

10.  Make sure that the group follows the “rules of the road.”  Use sidewalks, run on the left side of the road, obey all traffic laws, etc…

11. Encourage the group to wear reflective clothing, especially if running in the dark.

12.  Never leave behind an injured runner.  Allow the group continue with their workout while you stay with the runner and call for help.

13.  Consider organizing a post-run social event: coffee, breakfast, etc… Most runner’s join a group for the social component!

These rules are paraphrased from the RRCA Guidelines.  Click HERE to see the full list.

Have you ever been a pacer during a race or training group?  It’s my favorite way to run!

Favorite cookie?  Mine is a molasses cookie that I bake during Christmas.

#choosejoy

5 Words or Less

It’s been a full week!  To catch up, I’ve captioned each pic with 5 words or less.  Let’s do this!

Wednesday

Woke up to rain 😦

But crepes made it better 🙂

Before the rainy run

Monkey training.  Soaked post-run!

6 bake sale buttercakes.

Toffee buttercake!!  Recipe coming soon…

Sinema celebratory dinner. CB BQ’d!!!!!

Butternut squash salad and pasta

Sinema selfie in the restroom.

Thursday

Breakfast after 6 hilly miles

Getting excited for Christmas!

Pottery Barn 1.  Jennifer 0.

Girls On The Run Fundraiser.

We take ourselves seriously.

Such a wonderful organization.

End of the night selfie.

Friday

Loving the new Saucony Triumph’s!

Will stop for pretty leaves!

Love me some Olivia Pope!

What are you up to this weekend?

Have you started buying Christmas gifts yet?

Do you run outside in the rain or hit the treadmill?

#choosejoy

Ladder Workout and Rad New Tights

Track Tuesday….Ladder Workout!

Monday night prep…

Up and down the ladder…

4 mile warm-up

Run at 5K pace:

400, 800, 1200, 1600, 1200, 800, 400 (400 recovery job between each level)

1 mile cool down

After our hard work, some of our track group went out for coffee. #mytribe

My iphone 5 finally kicked the bucket, so I had to buy a new one.  Amazingly, the transition has been pretty smooth.  I’m always terrified that I will lose my information.   I distrust the cloud!

I received my RunnerMarx shirt in the mail.  He has an awesome Instagram account and he sells these shirt to raise money for KaBOOM (a non-profit organization dedicated to ensuring that all kids get a childhood filled with the balanced and active play needed to thrive). Very cool!  You can order a shirt HERE!

I made a big pot of homemade vegetable soup.  This is my husband’s favorite soup…recipe coming soon!!

I voted! (In my Ultra Dirtbag jacket of course!)

I bought this pineapple painting by Jen Ramos for my music room, because it’s pink and it’s a pineapple.  Do more of what makes you happy, yes?!!

I keep picking up acorns from my front yard and stashing them around the house…I LOVE fall!

Pretty flower by the kitchen sink:)

And lastly, I bought these kick-arse reflective tights from Fleet Feet Nashville this afternoon….swoon!  They’re Nike Flash Women’s Running Tights.

 

And a reminder to be kind to yourself:)

Do you have trouble when you switch from your old phone to a new one? I feel like I always lose notes or pictures, or contacts…

Are you doing speed work this week?  Share!

What’s your favorite kind of soup?

#choosejoy

The Friday Five

Happy Halloween!!!

1.  Let’s start with a little cheesy Halloween Humor:)

2.  I guess I had no idea what a porcupine sounds like, but this made my day!

3.  I found Ultra Dirtbag Earrings on Etsy!  Well…they’re awesome skull earrings, but they look just like our logo.  LOVE!

4.  I may or may not have designed a pair of Nike iD Lunar Glide 6’s to match my favorite Chicago Marathon shirt. Beyond happy…yes I’m a dork.

And they just happen to match my new #6run5 shirt from Fleet Feet Nashville!!

5.  Pimpin’ Joy.  If you listen to The Bobby Bones Show, you’ve heard about Judy’s battle with cancer.  Her one wish was for people to spread JOY.  They even started a Pimpin’ Joy campaign to promote acts of kindness.  Judy passed away this week.  Before her passing, they made this music video.  So…this weekend, go out and spread some JOY in her memory!!!

#pimpinjoy

Track and ASTYM

Track Tuesday:

1st day back doing speed since Chicago.  I was a little nervous and still took it easy by running my tempo pace, but I felt good!!!

Gotta love sweaty post-run pics! (It’s unseasonable warm here in TN.)

4 mile warmup

6 x 400m (400 recovery jog)

1:45
1:48
1:46
1:45
1:45
1:43

1 mile cool down

After such a grueling workout (I kid), Christi Beth needed a nap in Michael’s trunk.

To celebrate Dave’s MCM and the upcoming Monumental and NYCM…we went to breakfast afterwards.  How awesome is this group?!! #mytribe

This afternoon I had another PT session at ProMotion with Leah.  She did more ASTYM work on my knee.  (It’s pronounced A Stim.)

What is ASTYM?

Astym® treatment is a therapy that regenerates healthy soft tissues (muscles, tendons, etc.), and eliminates or reduces unwanted scar tissue that may be causing pain or movement restrictions. Astym® treatment is highly effective and even works when other approaches routinely fail. One of the main reasons Astym® treatment is so much more effective than other treatments is that it was scientifically developed to resolve the underlying cause of soft tissue problems, rather than just trying to temporarily relieve symptoms. It is one of the most researched and effective therapy treatments available. Astym® treatment is unmatched in its ability to resolve tendinopathies, scar tissue problems, and other soft tissue dysfunctions.

Here are the tools…

And,work on my knee…

It hurts a little, but it also feels really good.  ASTYM leaves some bruising, but nothing too crazy.  Leah is really helping me to recover quickly and after 3 treatments, I can already tell a big difference.

Here’s a short YouTube video tutorial about ASTYM…

Just because…

Jason’s out of town so I picked up some take-out dinner…for one. Apparently, I ordered so much food that they thought it was for two Runger is real.

And, on a super cheesy note…I really appreciate you for taking the time to read my blog.  It means the world to me!

Have you ever had to go to PT for a running related injury?  What for?  How did you treat it?

How long after a marathon do you start speed work again?

Do you cook dinner when it’s just for one?  (Obviously I don’t)

#choosejoy