Packing and Thanksgiving

I'm so exhausted!  I worked the past two nights and I picked up an extra shift this week.  I'm still wondering why I thought that would be a good idea.  This afternoon I got up and decided I'd go to the gym for my run because I was running out of daylight.  The plan was 9 miles with 6x800s at 3:57 min/mile.  I warmed up for a mile before my intervals and then completed the last couple miles with a fast finish.  It was a really good run although I don't really enjoy being on a treadmill for 9 miles!  I watched Oprah for a while and then switched to my boring ipod playlist.

We are in the process of moving out of our townhouse so my husband and I have been hard at work bubble wrapping, packing, and cleaning.  Moving is hard work!  One good thing is getting rid of things that we don't need any more.  We are giving away our couches, coffee table, side table, old tv, tv stand, and about six big bags of clothes to Goodwill.  We got a lot done tonight! 

Sadly, there we are having no real Thanksgiving dinner.  Jerry's family is all in north Alabama and my brother, sister, mom, and the rest of my family are in Ohio.  Because of school and work, we couldn't get together with family.  That's a tough part of being a nurse.  Hospitals don't shut down on holidays!  I couldn't even bake because all our cookware is boxed up.  So, we bought a pumpkin pie in an attempt to be festive.  We waited until after midnight and then shared pie on paper plates on a packing break.  It was yummy!  What would a vegetarian eat on Thanksgiving anyway?  I'll have to figure that one out before next year! 

This wasn't exactly a traditional Thanksgiving but there's always next year!  I am so thankful for all the blessings in my life.  I have a loving husband who is my best friend and a wonderful family who I miss so much!  I'm going to Ohio in December for the holidays to visit and I absolutely can't wait!  I hope you all have a great Thanksgiving with the ones you love.

Happy Thanksgiving,

Leah B.

This Week and 18 Miler Report

This has been quite a crazy week and the next couple weeks are going to get even crazier!  Besides trying to get ready for the holidays, increasing my mileage, and work, my husband and I have to be moved out of our townhouse by the end of this month.  We have lots to do in preparation but we'll get it done. 

On a bright note, training this week has been a success!  I ran a total of 41.3 miles this week and I think this is one of the first time's I've broken the 40 mile mark.  They were all good runs for me too.  I had a tempo and a race pace run and a couple short ones. 

Can you believe I went to bed at 8:00 p.m. last night?  Yep, I was tired!  This morning I got up bright and early for my 18 miler in Fairhope.  I met up a running group at the Fairhope Pier along the bay.  I have to say that this was one of the most beautiful runs I've ever done.  I ran along the beautiful bay as the sun rose, along the golf course and through pretty country.  This is a photo of the pier (I did not take this pic). 

Gloria and I started off the first 3 miles with the guys and they were going way too fast.  After that we slowed down a bit and she finished off 11.5 miles with me.  She showed me a beautiful course that I'll definitely do again.  Then I was on my own to finish 6.5 miles.  I kicked it up a little and when I only had 6 left I started getting excited.  I was feeling great!  Then when was at mile 16 I was ready to be finished.  I was getting achy and my back was hurting.  Why was my back sore?  Maybe I wasn't running with good posture.  I felt like Dory from Finding Nemo, "Just keep swimming...".  At this point, I was counting down the quarter miles left.  I finally finished and I finished strong!  Overall my pace was 9:15 min/mile which is so close to my marathon pace.  It was a really great run!



When I got home I took a 10 minute ice bath.  Is it worth it?  Do you take ice baths?  It is torturous and I despise them!  I ate a big bowl of cereal and am on my way to take a nap.  I'm ready for a lazy Sunday now!  I hope you have a relaxing Sunday with the ones you love.  45 Days until the Disney Marathon!

Leah B.

Tempo!

Over the past few days I've been a stuffy, sneezing, and coughing machine.  I tried to let myself rest.  I didn't run Saturday and Sunday but had to work all night.  Monday I had a REAL rest day.  And by that I mean nothing.  I didn't even leave my house in hopes that I'd be fully recovered. 

Yesterday I was finally able to get back in the swing of things after being sick.  My throat felt fine and my head was less stuffy.  I ran 3 miles at 8:37 average pace.  Today my training calendar had me scheduled for my first tempo run.  Over the next couple months before the marathon, I will be doing tempo and speed work each week and I'm so excited!  Anyway, I warmed up for 2 miles and then kicked it into gear for 3 miles at approximately 8:08 min/mile.  I grabbed some water and then took it easy for the last 3 miles to cool down.  My overall pace was 8:46.  I probably should have ran a little easier on my warm up/cool down miles but I was feeling good!  Running 8 miles like this was a fun change!

How is your running going?  Do you do much speed/tempo during training?

Leah B.

Long Run + The Sniffles

Because I haven't been feeling great with this cold and sinus crud (or whatever it is), last night I got myself to bed early in preparation for my long run.  It's kind of funny and a little annoying to wake myself up in a sneezing fit in the middle of the night!  I got up pretty early and was feeling much better.  I premedicated myself with nasal spray and brought along my cough drops.

I headed over to Fairhope to meet Jeanene to get some miles in before the Phat Girlz met.  We ran 8 and then I continued to run another 6 with Kat and the rest of the phatties for a total of 14 miles.  It was a really great long run!  I was pretty happy with my 9:31 overall pace.  It was so nice to chat with these lovely ladies and leave my ipod behind. 

When I got home, I ate a big bowl of Kashi cinnamon cereal with soy milk, showered, and got in bed.  I slept for about 2 hours but would've slept longer if I could!  Now, if I could stop sneezing and sniffling, that would be great!  I really hope I get over this soon.  I'll gladly embrace tomorrow's rest day!

I really need a new playlist by the way.  Any song suggestions?  I like all kinds!

Happy Friday,
Leah B.

Relax and Take it Easy

When I woke up I realized it was hard to swallow.  Oh please, tell me I'm not catching my husband's crud!  Hopefully it's just sinus related and I'm not actually getting sick.  I felt slightly better after my coffee so I decided I'd go ahead with today's run. 

My calendar told me that I had 8 miles of hills.  I took it nice and easy and I didn't push it.  The weather was beautiful and it was a perfect 68 degrees with a chill in the wind.  I'm supposed to be running my hills workouts at a 9:58 min/mile but that just didn't feel right to me.  I went with what felt good and I ended up with an average 9:14 min/mile.  Overall, the run felt great.  My throat, however, did not. 

I stretched and showered and was back in my pajamas by 6 p.m.  For dinner I wanted something easy and warm so I made this.

Yum, so good!  I LOVE Amy's products.  They have delicious organic soups and frozen dinners.  I also had some Greek yogurt and almonds.  I'm now sitting on the couch sipping some hot tea with lemon and honey.  I have an apple cinnamon candle lit and I'm about to read a magazine.  I don't plan on leaving my couch for the rest of the night! 

Do we take enough time to relax?  It's hard for us runners to take it easy.  We have an agenda!  We need to take those rest days and recover.  Is it as hard for you to rest as it is for me?

I hope you have a relaxing night,
Leah B.

NOLA Trip and 16 Miles

I had a FUN filled weekend!  Let me tell you all about it...

On Friday afternoon my husband and I met up with some friends and headed over to New Orleans for a couple of nights of fun.  Our #1 agenda was to see Mumford and Sons.  If you don't know them, you need to.  They are amazing to say the least.  Before the concert we ate at an Italian/pizza place and it was so good but we all smelled like garlic butter afterwards!  After dinner, we went to the venue to wait in line and froze out butts off. 

When the doors finally opened we rushed in and eventually were almost front row! We saw a couple of good opener bands and then it was time for Mumford and Sons! I have to say this was the best show I've been to besides the few annoying drunk people. 

Here are all six of us.  Patrick, Leah O. Travis (just the top of his head!) Me, Paul, and Jerry.

After the concert we went out and eventually met up with Calee.  She and some of her classmates from Alabama were down for the Bama and LSU game.  It's always great seeing my wonderful friend!

Saturday afternoon we went to Cafe Du Monde for a beignet and delicious coffee.  We walked and shopped around a bit and then went for dinner.  Everyone else stayed out quite a bit later than me and my hubby because we had lots to do today.  Maybe we're just an old married couple now :)  Actually, I knew I had to run 16 miles and he had to work.  So, we were smart and got ourselves a good night sleep!

Today's 16 miler wasn't exactly fun, however.  There were a few things working against me.
1.  It was 1:30 p.m. when I started so I already was tired from getting up early and the drive.
2.  I was all alone!  I had  no one to chat with and pass the time.
3.  My ipod playlist is boring me to death and I desperately need new running music.
4.  I ran the same old route that I always do except today was just over and over and over.
Basically, I was sensory deprived and I was ready to get it over with!  I was actually looking forward to my ice bath just because that meant I was done.  (I later regretted looking forward to that misery.)  I really shouldn't complain.  The weather was in the 60s and sunny.  My body felt great which is awesome!  I was just glad to be finished and have a rest day tomorrow.  Don't worry, I learned my lesson last week and I will take a real rest day!

I hope you all have a great week!
Leah B.