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

 

Track Tundra

Monday:

We got our first “snow” during my morning run!!  8 miles.  (I know to a lot of you this is humorous, but I still get excited!)

After my run I took an Orange Theory Fitness class.  It’s such a fun way to cross train!

While I was out running errands, I discovered Toe Warmers!  How have I never seen these?  I haven’t tried them yet.  I wonder if they work while running or if they just get in the way?

For dinner, I heated some Tortilla Soup that I froze a few weeks ago.

Before bed, I did my first PiYO Core workout.  If I diligently do these dvd’s, will my abs look like hers?

And prepped for Tuesday Track…

Track Tuesday:

I knew it would be cold and it was!

I know it’s a cold one when I bust out the Wrightsock Double Layer Socks!  I wrote about them on my 10 Cold Weather Running Tips and Fave Gear List.

I wondered if anyone would show up, and thankfully Michael, Corrie, Shyla, and Alex were crazy enough to do speed work with me!!!

5 mile warm-up

8 x 600m (200 recovery jog)

Goal: 2:32  Actual: 2:34, 2:33, 2:33, 2:32, 2:32, 2:30

1 mile cool down

It was such a tough workout for me today.  I was working really hard and my legs just didn’t want to turnover.  Maybe it was from the cold weather.  At least I got out there, but it definitely didn’t help my confidence.

Last week, I wrote about my new favorite Hot Apple Cider Tea.

Well now, I’ve stepped it up and added some Mulling Spices.  IT IS SOOOO GOOD!

I was called out by @live.laugh.love.run to #stopdropandselfie on Instagram.  I still haven’t mastered this selfie thing.

For dinner, I made a kitchen sink salad…

pumpkin ravioli…

and a chocolate Shakeology shake! (I made it with dark chocolate almond milk and ice.  It’s SO good!)  Also, I’ve gone over a full week without my beloved vegan chocolate chip cookies!!

Must Read from Zelle:  Jenn Thompson, an ultra-runner, was bitten twice by a prairie rattlesnake while running leaving her fighting for her life.  I’ve been following her story for a while now and I am in awe of her determination to run again.

Have you done the PiYO workouts?  Thoughts? 

What’s your healthy alternative for your sweet tooth?

What’s your favorite cold weather dinner?  Right now, I’m craving grilled cheese and tomato soup!

#choosejoy

Miles and Music

Long Run Prep:

Whenever I’m running over 20 miles, I use it as an excuse to have a big bowl of Friday night pasta!

My brain doesn’t work early Saturday morning, so I make sure to have my ducks in a row the night before.

The all important coffee…I could write an entire post about how much I love my Nespresso Vertuoline.

Saturday:

I joined the Run 4 Others group again this week for 21 (very COLD) miles.

Great company made the miles fly by!

Without these Hot Hands tucked into my gloves, I’m convinced I would have lost a few digits.

When I got home, my very sweet husband had made steel-cut oats with my Gran’s peaches…so good!

We ran errands, bummed around the house, and watched the Cats lose:(  Thank goodness it’s basketball season!

Saturday night, we went to a St. Jude Songwriter Night Fundraiser.  I even put on real clothes…crazy!

One of the best things about living in Nashville is the musical talent!  Jenn Schott (one of my favorite run friends) is also a very talented singer songwriter.  She worked with the Run 4 Others group to organize a songwriters night to raise money for St. Jude Children’s Hospital.

Not only did we enjoy dinner and great music, but they raised a lot of money for the hospital!!  Sorry it’s a cruddy picture, but I loved seeing so many runners support a great cause!!!

My hot date!

Also, don’t forget that I’m running St. Jude Memphis on December 6 to raise money for the Children’s Hospital.  It’s not too late to make a donation.  No amount is too small!!!!  Just click the link:)  It’s for the kids:) You know you want to:)

Click HERE to donate!

Sunday:

The rain was supposed to hold off, but we woke up to a very wet and cold Sunday morning.  So…outdoor USMC Bootcamp sounded like a great idea!  Hills, pushup, situps, etc…

These folks made it fun!  Bonus: I finally got to meet a social media run friend, Julie Ulery.  She’s an awesome runner and has a new blog UleryRuns!

We decided that this is the appropriate outfit for cold and wet hill sprints.

It took me forever to thaw out.  Even Caroline was parked beside the heat vent.

The weather stayed nasty all day, so we put in some gym time.

I did a lot of TRX work.

And abs…

Needless to say, I feel like jelly after a day full of cross training.

Earlier this week, Dorothy Beal from Mile Posts posted this quote.  It has stuck with me, so I wanted to share it!

Did you race or long run this weekend?

How are you braving the cold weather?  

What’s your favorite dinner before a long run?

#choosejoy

Cookie Confessional

This was the most normal weekend I’ve had in ages and I loved it!!  I needed it!  I feel like life has been a whirlwind since Chicago without my regular routine or my regular energy.  So for now, I’m thankful for business as usual 🙂

Saturday

I joined the Run 4 Others group. Everyone is training for different races.  Dave made a great route so we could start together and you could break off and head back to your car for your mileage.

And then there were 3.  Roy and Jenn ran the full 20 miles with me and we had a blast!  P.S.  This was the first long run since Chicago with ZERO knee pain…woo hoo!

Jenn told us the best story about a time when she was really struggling during a run.  She kept having the negative thought, “you’re toast” repeating in her head.  So, she turned it around.  “You’re multi-grain, fortified, whole grain, STRONG TOAST!”  I will forever think of “strong toast” when I’m struggling during a run!

Post-run breakfast of champions…steel cut oats with peaches that my Gran froze during peak season and Coconut Almond Quinoa Crunch…yummo!

Getting into the Thanksgiving spirit…

Sunday

We started a new (free) Sunday morning bootcamp class!  For those in the Nashville area, follow me on facebook for specifics.  This group is no joke.  We started with hill work up a .75 mile climb at a 9% grade.  The view from the top is beautiful!  Then we did an hour of pushups, sprints, mountain climbers, etc…

It was a tough workout, but I had a blast.  We were fired up to run down the big hill to finish class!

Alex (on the far right) BQ’d at Monumental a week ago and did this class this morning.  Crazy!

After class, Jason and I went for a run together.

While the world is excited about their Red Cups, I’m stoked that Starbucks is brewing the Thanksgiving Blend!!!  It’s my favorite of all of their coffees!

So here’s my cookie confessional:  

I have a big crush on the vegan chocolate chip cookies from Whole Foods.  Leading up to Chicago, my cookie habit grew from one a day to FOUR!  I don’t care how many miles I run a day, I have no business eating four cookies a day.

So I’m no longer buying cookies for my house.  If they’re here, I’ll eat them.  Instead, I’ve started making Chocolate Shakeology Shakes.  They taste like brownie batter and are a lot healthier for me than cookies.  (Note: I’m not using them as meal replacements, but as an afternoon snack.)

Most importantly, today (November 9th) is National Adoption Day! My sweet husband is adopted and I couldn’t be more grateful for his birthmother and adopted mother:)

What’s your food weakness? Do you keep it in your house?

What’s your next race?  How’s your training going?

What was the best part of your weekend?

#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

Three Words Per Picture

If you know me, three words per picture is a challenge!  Here’s my weekend wrap-up…

Is this true?!

Breakfast of champions.

Coffee fueled miles.

Learning to tape.

Post PT sushi!

Choose Joy Roll

New 50K plan!!!

14 mile Saturday:)

Love ice baths.

Fire and marshmallows.

Sunday gym shirt.

Colorful Sharpie crafting!!

Good luck goodies…

Sunday Funday cheers!

Lastly, a question…

and an answer…

Did you race this weekend?  How did it go?

What’s your favorite sushi?

Are you crafty?  What do you love to make?

#choosejoy

What’s Next

So…I’m still nursing some Chicago soreness.  Icing my knee seemed like a great time to write this post.

I even took a rest day yesterday…crazy!  Who am I?!

I’m so glad I did because I was able to run again today. I met my friends on the track. I wasn’t able to do the speed work, but I did log 9 miles jogging around the track. I’ll take it!!

Tomorrow, I’m going to PT for the first time. Even though I’m starting to feel better, I want to be proactive and learn how to stengthen my knee for future races.

This down time has been good to focus on what’s next. Here’s my race schedule through January.

November 23. The Flying Monkey Marathon.  The course is crazy hard.  Hello hills! I’m not doing it with a goal time…just fun (if that’s possible)!

November 27. Boulevard Bolt. It’s our Thanksgiving 5 miler. My husband and I run it together every year and it’s one of my favorite traditions!

December 6. St Jude Memphis (half or full). I still haven’t decided which distance I want to run.  It just depends on how my body is holding up:)

BUT, I am running it as a ST JUDE HERO.  No family or child pays for their medical care, travel, housing…incredible!! The race actually runs through the St Jude campus. It is THE BEST reminder of why we run.  Any donation would be greatly appreciated….just click HERE.  No gift is too small.

January 3. The Pistol Ultra. I’m running the 50k. This will be my first paved ultra!

What’s up next for you?

Do you run races for fun or are you always racing?

#choosejoy

Return to Running & Lauren’s Birthday!

First…a huge thank you to everyone for you kind words of encouragement. It means more to me than I can express. I am not an exceptional runner…I just really love running. Thank you for sharing in the joy!!!!

I have another marathon in a month, so I’m doing a reverse taper.  Here’s my training this week.

Monday.

3 mile walk plus more airport walking.

Tuesday.

Sore quads. Rainy day. 3 miles of treadmill walking and lots of upper body weights.

Excited to wear some of my Chicago swag!

Wednesday.

6 rainy miles with friends. Slow but felt great…woo hoo! Wanted to run extra but decided to be smart.

In lieu of extra miles, I went to get a crepe instead…priorities:)

Evening Orange Theory Fitness class with lots of time on the bike and rower.

When the hubs is away, the wife will not cook dinner and instead get a tofu taco salad, watch hulu, and eat entirely too many tortilla chips. Such a glamorous life!

Thursday

Special Breakfast Club run in downtown Franklin with breakfast at Frothy Monkey

to celebrate Lauren’s birthday!!!  Aren’t Alex and Lauren the sweetest couple?!!

5 miles with group this awesome group!

Breakfast

2.5 solo miles afterwards in my new Saucony Kona Kinvaras!

Here are some great tips from Runner’s World on When To Return To Running After A Marathon.

As a general guideline, I suggest taking three to seven days completely off after a marathon. Sleep in, eat, and enjoy your accomplishment! After that, begin an active recovery program. Active recovery includes light exercise and even some running, if you are not sore. “Light” exercise means exercising at a low intensity level, i.e., no more than 60-65% of your max heart rate for a relatively short duration, less than 60 minutes. Activity actually helps you recover faster than inactivity because it promotes circulation. Good circulation delivers fresh oxygen and nutrients to muscles and carries away metabolic waste and, therefore, aids healing and recovery. Walking, running, riding a bike, stretching, or swimming for 30 to 60 minutes at low intensity will promote circulation and assist your recovery. Massage therapy and foam rolling can also help relieve muscle soreness and assist recovery by increasing the body’s circulation too.

Where are you at in your training?  Taper, Recovering, Long Runs?

Do you run with groups?  Why or why not?

Favorite Breakfast?  Mine is obviously oatmeal!

#choosejoy

Chicago Marathon Day

I woke up excited to run!! I’ve never tapered properly until this race and I really missed running…a lot.

Temps were perfect for race day!

I bring my banana bread with me for destination races. It’s tried and true, and I enjoyed it in bed with a cappuccino.

Here’s the rest of my race prep. THANK YOU Fleet Feet for the throw away gloves!

Use code: JENCHOOSESJOY (all caps) at Cocogo.com to save 10% off your order!

Don’t forget the all important Body Glide!

We bought passes for the hospitality tent. A little pricey but so worth it. We stayed a block away from the tent.

It was a nice warm place to sit down and drink some water before the race. I didn’t get to enjoy their yummy breakfast spread.

But it gave my husband a nice spot to hang out with TVs to watch the race.

The crowds were crazy walking to my corral but I found my 3:50 pacers and we started at 7:36.
It felt like we were running in slow motion. In hindsight I was probably a little too conservative, but I desperately wanted to have a negative split and finish strong.
As promised, the course was flat and the spectators were incredible.
I started my garmin and changed the screen to the clock view. It’s the first time I’ve run by feel. I trusted the pacers for the first half and picked up my pace around the mile 13. I didn’t look at my watch until mile 25.

Splits:
8:40, 8:26, 8:57, 8:28, 8:37, 8:35, 8:30, 8:58, 8:51, 8:50, 8:20, 8:31, 8:11, 8:30, 8:27, 8:25, 8:20, 8:23, 8:11, 8:21, 8:20, 8:08, 8:03, 8:08, 7:52, 7:42

Gu 15 mins before race, 1 hr, 2hr, 20 mile marker.
This was the most fun I’ve ever had running a road marathon!  Can you tell? 🙂

1st Half: 8:45

2nd Half: 8:15

After meeting up at the hospitality tent after the race, I came back to the room, took an ice bath and shower and I ate pretzels in bed. Guess I needed salt.

After some rest we had celebratory bubbles!

And dinner at Osteria Via Stato

Gnocchi and butternut squash ravioli

And brought a slice of fudgy chocolate cake back at the room!

Did you race this weekend? I’d love to hear about it!!
Have you run the Chicago Marathon?
How do you celebrate after a race?

#choosejoy

You Are Not A Number.

It is so easy to define myself with a number…my weight, income, paces, etc…When they are good, I’m happy with myself.  When they’re not, I beat myself up.  I noticed yesterday that I was feeling like a loser for not wanting to “race” Chicago.  So, I decided to type out a few of my thoughts…

Weight. Runners tend to be a little obsessive and type A about everything.  It’s easy to obsess over weight. I don’t own a scale anymore, because it was too easy to focus over one pound here and one pound there.  I realized that the number was determining my mood.  Now, I just use my clothes to keep me in line.  If they’re snug…eat less cupcakes.

Salary. I’m blessed to not have to work but sometimes my ego misses my career. Walking away from my job was one of the scariest things I’ve ever done.  (In my past life I was a creative director for a music publishing company.) Sometimes it’s a blow to my ego when I tell people that I don’t work…as if my worth is tied to an income.

Race Times. I can’t tell you how people have asked me about my goal for Chicago. Answer: enjoy the race, do my best, and have fun. I’ve heard plenty of runner say that they’re afraid to run a race just for fun because others might judge their finish time. What?!! Running is supposed to be fun!

Age.  Today we are celebrating my husband’s 40th Birthday!  He looks and feels like he’s 30.  I used to think 40 was so old, but we’re just getting started!

Social Media. How many followers, friends, stalkers(I kid) do you have?  Do you ever feel down when nobody likes a post, picture, or status update?

Don’t get me wrong, I love data. It pushes me to be better. Maybe just extend some courtesy and grace to those around you. Don’t ask someone’s weight, paces, salary, etc… If they want to share it with you, they will. I hope this doesn’t come across like a soapbox moment…it’s just a reminder that we are not our numbers.

On to the fun stuff…
My Perch is getting into the fall spirit.

Perch Blend Soy Cafe au Lait

I had an awesome taper run.

Please let these legs show up on race day! LOVE this Oiselle tank…fly!

I actually had to slow my roll, and this turtle was the perfect reminder.

When I made this Vegetarian Tortilla Soup a couple of weeks ago, I froze some for later. I heated it up for dinner tonight.

And the hubs surprised me with dessert!

 

I’d love to hear your thoughts on how we define ourselves by our numbers!  Have you experienced any of the same feelings?

How’s your training going?  Where are you at…taper, peak weeks?

#choosejoy