The Great Georgia Snowpocalypse!

WE HAVE SNOW!

Ahhhmahgad you guys. 

Yep, everyone around here pretty much freaked out. It's very very unusual to have snow here. I think my coworker said the last time they had a decent amount of snow was 2005? So yes, I got out of work early yesterday and I'm off today. The snow started last night

And we ended up with a couple inches of snow today. Not too much snow on the roads but there was ice. It was enough to cause chaos all over the area - there were alot of road closures and a 25 car pileup.

A sight I shall probably never see again...

It's really pretty. I haven't seen snow in 2 years (we got it in Texas believe it or not!) so I am enjoying it while I can. Last night I stood out in the falling snow for a bit and then took a walk in it this morning.

This week has not been good diet-wise. Not at all. I am kind of feeling like a bum with this snowy weather, but I at least made myself do some strength training today. I am so glad I did, I instantly felt better! Tomorrow the snow should clear up so I plan on running 3 miles. My husband is sick with some kind of viral infection. He is kind of miserable and there's not a whole lot the doctors can do about it. I asked him if I might get it and he said "You already have it." Great. I better not get sick, I have too much training to do! So far I am not feeling any worse, and I really hope it stays that way.

From the winter wonderland of Georgia - farewell!

A little tidbit for Sunday

It's Sunday and I am feeling good. Legs aren't really sore anymore, and I did my 1:30 min yoga session this morning. I pretty much left it all out on the field (mat?) and got a really good workout.

I went to lunch with my husband today and we were talking about the drive to be athletic and how it's not "required" in today's world. I said that distance runners must be crazy - the things we put ourselves through are completely optional, and yet we love to suffer through the pain. Heck, people think I'm crazy when I tell them I ran 8 miles on my Saturday morning. He said "No, I think distance runners are simply looking for new experiences and challenges" Yeah. I like that.

Also, this is pretty cool. So I finally got a Georgia license plate for my Jeep since we're gonna be staying around here for awhile. My old state required a front license plate and Georgia does not, so I had to think of something to put in the ugly blank rectangle on the front of my Jeep. Someone on the Spartan Chicked facebook group came up with the best idea - get a black license plate and put a Spartan Race sticker on it! And that's exactly what I did. Behold!

Freakin awesome!

That kinda hurt

I think I've reached a turning point. Up until now, my long runs have been challenging and painful at times. But for some reason today's 9 mile run was so much harder. I guess I'm getting to the point where I am pushing my body's limits and it has to adjust.

I woke up to another cold ass morning here in Georgia. It's been so damn cold here lately. The palm trees are frozen. The peaches have turned into peach flavored ice cream! I kinda like it, because I am NOT a hot weather runner.

This morning I made these Pre Run Cookies from Run Eat Repeat. They are pretty tasty and don't task my stomach with alot of digesting. However, up until now I've always eaten the same pre run breakfast, so not really sure if the change had something to do with how tired I felt today? More testing is required. The cookies are good though!

I love my coffee mug! My husband got it for me from South Korea while he was stationed over there.


So yeah, it was about 27 degrees when I went out there. Unfortunately my main running jacket was in the washer with the load I started before I left the house, so I had to wear my backup one. It's more of a "meshy" fabric, so with the cold winds blowing out there I was finding it much harder to warm up than usual. Things were going pretty good until about mile 7. My legs were just so achy. My hips, quads, knees, calves, everything was just ready to be done. I have never done anything like this in my entire life. My body is like "WWWTFFHHH. Seriously??? What the eff are you doing right now." Hang in there buddy, I just need you to be able to do this half marathon and then I'll back off the miles a little until April!

The funny thing about this run was I stumbled into a 5k race. It was actually the Dog Gone Cold race I did last year. Part of their course turns onto the canal trail and turns around after a mile or so. I happened upon them when all the faster runners had already passed through - this was mainly walkers and walkers with their dogs. Personal opinion here - I don't understand why people would sign up for a 5k and just walk their dog. I guess it's good that they are out there period, and maybe they want to donate to the dog charity or whatever (I forget the name but the proceeds do go to something) but still... I would at least try to challenge myself to run a little if I had paid money for it. I could go walk my dog for free, you know? Anyway, it was pretty weird running through this race. The mile marker guy yelled out a time at me as I passed him, even though I wasn't wearing a bib.. lol.

Walking after this run was kinda painful! I feel better now at least. Ran a few errands around town, even picked up a pair of Under Armor yoga capris that were on sale, since I have one single pair of yoga pants. I ran into someone from work - a manager from another department. I looked like hell with my unwashed hair and just-ran-9-miles stanky self. I really should have explained my appearance but we were mainly talking about work stuff so I didn't get to. Plus we were in a sports store and I was wearing a race tshirt, so maybe it was self explanatory? Still, kinda embarrassing!

Lunch was had at Tin Drum, a place that serves Asian inspired food. I got a curry dish with red chili and coconut. It was tasty but a bit sweet. I had to dump some Sriracha on this sucker

I picked up a "Caramel Flan latte" from Starbucks. I only just had flan for the first time the other day so I kind of had to try this. It was good and tasted pretty close to flan. Finally I picked up some raw honey! See, the town I live in is country - growing rapidly due to the military population, but still pretty country. So there's a farmstand not very far from my house, and they sell local raw honey! This should be good - it's pretty healthy stuff from what I hear

Tomorrow will be a yoga day and I'll probably take a recovery walk as well. Lately I've learned more about active recovery, and how it's better to do it instead of just not moving at all. So I'll try it and see how it goes!

All better now

Sorry about my whiny post from a couple days ago. I was just in one of those funky moods. I'm feeling much better and more motivated now.

Last night was strength training. Mainly upper body, alot of pull ups. I can do 15 pushups in a row now, when I used to only be able to do 10. And I also upgraded to 15lb handweights, the 10's were just too easy. Tonight was a 3 mile run since I missed Tuesday. In fact, I think I want to do (1) 2 mile and (1) 3 mile on the weekdays from now on. I think I have enough time for that. Tonight was cold as balls but I got it done. The only bad part was my ankle rolled when I stepped off the curb, but I realized what was happening so I didn't land on it too hard. It was more like a soft roll. It hurt a little bit when it happened but the pain faded completely after a minute or two. It doesn't hurt at all now so I think it's good.

I found this too - about how to be happy when in physical pain (aka injury) I have moments of despair sometimes when I think I might be coming on with an injury. I've dealt with 2 - hip flexor pain and plantar fasciitis, plus a semi cranky knee. It's gonna happen from time to time. This article touches on alot of the things I have come to realize when dealing with an injury. You really do have to stay positive, realize it is only temporary and things will get better, and remember that there are those who have it MUCH worse than you!

As of today, the Augusta Half is exactly 1 month away. Can I officially start freaking out now???

That's all for now - Saturday's long run is 9 miles and I dunno what I will do Sunday. Prolly Yoga or Ironstrength. Toodles!

Not feelin it

Blah.

I'm in some kind of weird funk lately.

I don't wanna do anything, I'm tired, and I feel kind of apathetic about things.

I think this has something to do with my husband's change in schedule. See, I can deal with not seeing him during the work week - I only have about 3 hours anyway, and I've got stuff to do like exercise, make dinner, do chores, pay bills, catch up on the internet, etc. But this weekend was weird. He sleeps during the day now and it's just so lonely by myself. I got way more time with him on his old schedule. I was getting full days + 3-4 hours a night with him. Now I might get a good 2 hours a day to see him, 1 of which is him getting ready for work. How are we ever gonna get to do anything fun together?

Don't get me wrong, I'm an Army wife - I know how to do shit alone. I spent a full year away from him, plus separate chunks of a couple months at a time. When he is not here I can accept that and find ways to keep my mind occupied. But it's just... when we're in the same house together I kind of expect to get some quality time with him, you know? His days off are spent sleeping during the day, and when he does wake up at 6-7pm he's grumpy, and by the time he's fully awake and in a good mood I'm tired and ready for bed! I guess this wouldn't be so bad if it wasn't on top of all his medical issues. He's just started the medical retirement process and he's stressed about that. His depression and anxiety have me worried. I think he's smoking again which worries me. He tells me not to worry about him but it's not exactly a switch I can turn off.

I realize this is only the first week of his new schedule and that he must still be getting used to it. Last week was crazy for him at work, and he's had a bunch of medical appointments during the day. I know he is sleep deprived. And he's taking the change much better than I would - I can only sleep if it is DARK and QUIET! I kind of feel selfish for wanting to bother him when he could probably be sleeping, but I dunno. He is my best friend and when he's right here in my home, I have a really hard time not wanting to do every single thing with him.

So yeah. I just feel kinda down in it lately. I know I'll snap back out of it, but right now I just really don't feel like doing much. I realize going out for a run would make me feel better. And I think on any other day I could probably self motivate and go do it. But on top of feeling like a lazy bum, it's about 35 degrees and 20 mph winds out there right now. I just do NOT feel like it. And you know what? That's ok. As much as I love being active, there comes a day every now and then where I'm just not feelin it. And I figure every now and then I can take that pass.

I think tonight I'll just chill out. Think about the positive. Learn to appreciate just being by myself. This life of having him around all the time has made me soft. I can survive without him always by my side - I did it once and I can do it again

Lazy day!

So I have today off, which is really weird. I don't work for a bank or the gubment, I work for a golf car company.. and we usually only get the big holidays off - 4th of july, Thanksgiving, etc. But they had a floating holiday and decided to use it for today. Yippee!

I have pretty much used my day off to do absolutely nothing. The only thing I really did that was productive was paint my mailbox. I've been super tired today so I laid around, watched the movie Avatar (I forgot how much I love that movie!) and slept for awhile. I'm slowly waking up from my sleepy nap time with some iced coffee I made - added vanilla extract, coconut sugar, and a little bit of milk. It's pretty decent!

My husband has changed schedules again and it's been a really crazy week while both of us have been adjusting to it. He now works overnights and sleeps during the day. So this morning I slept in, but when I got up he wanted to go to breakfast. It was a nice surprise. Once again I'm trying to find things to occupy my time while he's not around, and I really have to resist the urge to go and wake him up!

I did Ironstrength as my Sunday workout. This time I did much better than my first attempt. Knowing what to expect helps a little - the first time I did it, I got to the last exercise, completely exhausted and thinking it'll be something easy since it's the last thing.. then he says "Burpees!" and I just fell on the floor and cried. Not really, but I kind of wanted to. I only did 4. Well this time I decided to throw in the burpees between the other exercises so they weren't waiting for me at the end. I did 17 out of 40 before I was too exhausted to do any more, but hey it's better than only doing 4! I was much better at the jump squats too. I'm sore as hell today - my legs, butt, and back are not happy at all right now. But this just goes to show how much I need to train these areas.

Tomorrow I think I will do some interval running, and sometime during the week I hope I can fit in an outdoor Spartan style workout. Just need to find a time where I have some decent daylight.

8 miles and new things

It's Saturday, and I'm sitting here chillin for a bit after my 8 miles and other random happenings of the day.

It was another cold morning here. Cold and windy. But it was sunny too, so this run was kind of weird. One minute I was cold, the next I was hot from the sun, and the next I was being blasted with icy winds. This was a good run though. One of the things I love about running is it's just my time to mentally unwind and clear my thoughts. It's my therapy, har har :) I have been worried about a few things this week, but once I was a couple miles into my run all those worries went right out the window and haven't been back since. Something about running just resets my mindframe and puts things into perspective for me - reminds me not to take little things so seriously. Reminds me that I am capable of awesome things. I find that challenging myself helps me find fulfillment. And stuff. Yeah.

8 miles is the longest distance I have run to date! This beats out my old distance record of 7.2 at Hickory Knob last year. And it's all upwards from here. My final run before the Half will be 11 miles, then I'll drop back down to about 6 or so. It's the best I can do with what little time I have.

After running I dropped by Fleet Feet and picked up this stuff

Yes. I have experienced the evils of chafing. I kind of had some issues under my sports bra line last weekend, but today it was right along my bikini line. Ouch! So I got some anti chafe stuff. I also saw a little foot ball for only 6 bucks, so I picked that up to replace my current tennis ball. I'm using the tennis ball for my plantar fascitis and I need a ball that is smaller. Plus this ones' got spikes! Also picked up some gels, these are more "natural" than the Gu's. I love Honey Stinger chews, so I have a good feeling about their gels!

For lunch I got to use one of my gift cards I got for winning 2nd place female at the Navy Classic last month. I got a free lunch at Laziza Meditteranean. I had never been there before or even had Mediterranean food for that matter. I got the Spicy Chicken Shawarma, and it was really good!

Kind of a bad picture, but it's spicy chicken, rice, jalapeno hummus with pita bread, and this tasty whipped garlic sauce stuff. Yeah, it's good stuff. Satisfying and doesn't make me feel gross after eating. I tried something new and have found a good spot for tasty food!

I also finally got my hair trimmed. I felt really bad for the poor woman who had to cut my hair. My "I just ran 8 miles, I probably have sunscreen and gel in my hair somewhere, my hair by nature is completely insane, and oh yeah I haven't had a haircut in over a year"

This silly picture is from my birthday last year - just to give you an idea about what my wild and crazy hair looks like. Now it's ever so slightly shorter!

Finally - I have officially signed up for 2 races! The Augusta Half - that's a given. I am pretty sure I will have no problem completing it. I also signed up for Tough Mudder in April! I haven't done one yet so I'm excited to see what that will be like.

Tomorrow might end up being another round of Ironstrength - you know, the thing that absolutely killed my legs this week? That might be happening. Pray for me!

Where I run

Thought I'd share some pictures of where I go for my long runs!

It's the Augusta Canal trail!

I love this place. If you run the whole thing one way it's 7 miles, or 14 out and back. That's more than enough for me at this time. It's a flat, wide trail that is perfect for running. It's right on the water, away from the roads and bustle of town, making it a nice getaway during my long runs. There are always tons of runners out there. I'm really happy to see so many runners in Augusta (or even North Augusta/Aiken, SC since this trail is literally right along the state line) You know, the South gets a bad rap for having a bunch of lazy/overweight people, so it's nice to see other runners out there beating those odds.

Savannah River

The Canal

A really muddy canal after a hard rainfall

I'm glad to have a place like this to run. I get really bad anxiety if I run on roads, so I'm kind of avoiding that altogether. The few times I have run on a road I was just paranoid the entire time and I just couldn't get into the right mindset. I guess I just don't trust the drivers to see me or look out for me, especially the ones around here. It's either country roads where people fly around the bend at 70 mph, or on the major roads where people are getting into accidents left and right because they aren't paying attention to that one guy going 40mph in a 65. Roads - not for me!

This is the bridge leading to the mainland/parking area

The canal - the trail is on the left side

And of course, a very important part of any run - BATHROOMS! They have great bathrooms here

Yes - I have definitely enjoyed coming out here for these long runs. I'll be back out there on Saturday for 8 miles - which will be my longest distance run ever!

Quadbliteration

Due to a severe thunderstorm that never happened, I ended up switching my long run to Sunday morning and doing my Sunday workout yesterday. I also decided to do the Ironstrength workout instead of my usual yoga.

Immediately after doing Ironstrength I knew I was gonna have a bad time. It was way harder than I thought it was gonna be and it left my legs really really sore. So, adding 7 miles on top of that? This is about how I'm feeling right now ...

Yeah. It's bad. But I did it, and I have zero regrets. 

The run was good aside from my legs hurting. By the end of it I was pretty warm and found myself wishing I had worn short sleeves and shorts. One thing I'm going to start doing every day is wearing sunscreen. I tried to do it before but I didn't like the kind I had. This is the suncreen I bought. So far I like it for my run and everyday use. The only bad thing is if I touch my face my hands get that nasty residue on them. But it doesn't turn into a runny messy goop on my face while I'm running so it will work nicely for me. Apparently this brand causes horrible burns on some people, but I don't seem to be one of them because I haven't had any problems. My skin is pretty resilient though. One thing I might have to get is one of those phone armband things for running. I'm sad about this because I absolutely hate those damn things. But my phone barely fits into my Nathan belt, and it weighs the belt down significantly and makes it bounce all over the place. Sigh. Oh well. I'm sure I can find one I won't hate. I am ditching my 8 year old Ipod because it will no longer let me put new songs on it. I've signed up for Spotify premium on my phone and started making a new running playlist. It's mostly metal but has a dash of some 90's rock/country/techno and even a couple rap songs. Right now it looks something like this

Arch Enemy
Soilwork
In Flames
Dethklok
311
Devildriver
Pop Evil
Soundgarden
Bolt Thrower
Lamb of God
Decapitated
Skillet
Avenged Sevenfold
Sevendust
Morbid Angel
Then the random country songs - FL/GA line, Eric Church, Dirks Bentley, etc.
I must be the only person in the world that likes death metal AND country. It has to be upbeat country though. Must be the Kentucky in my blood.
Yes, new playlist definitely helped get me through it today.

This is the face of Quadbliteration. 

I may do just arms tomorrow depending on how I'm feeling. My back muscles are actually really sore too, so it might just be a rest day for me.

I ran 7 miles and burned a sweet 850 calories. After running I went to Genghis Grill. I freaking LOVE this place. It's a Mongolian grill where you can build your own bowl of food. There are tons of meats, seasonings, veggies, and sauces that you get to add yourself. Then you pick a starch and they cook it for you. This was mine today

Chicken, steak, curry seasoning, cayenne, bell peppers, jalapenos, carrots, onions, green beans, pineapple, spinach, and rice - topped with cilantro, crispy noodles, and this stuff that I think might be chili garlic sauce? I also got the 3G sauce. I love this place because there are so many good veggies. I am still not the best veggie eater, but I'm trying to eat at places like Genghis Grill , Subway and Moe's so I can at least get some veggie content when I eat out. I'd like to think I'm making decent choices here :)

Time to relax a little bit and just hang out for the rest of my Sunday, since I'm pretty sure I will hardly be able to walk tomorrow!

Severe storms and Ironstrength Workout

Today didn't really go like I had planned.

The idea was to do 7 miles this morning, but they were calling for severe storms

Yeah, I'm in the red area. Now I don't mind running in a little rain, but I didn't want to be caught out there in a downpour for 7 miles. That's not fun for anyone. They were saying 50% chance of showers really early in the morning and that the high winds and heavy stuff wouldn't hit until around 10 or so. I thought about taking a chance, but then I remembered that was exactly what they said about the day I did Xterra Hickory Knob. "Light showers" turned out to be heavy rain, and a freezing, soaking wet me running 7 miles of trails. So I decided not to chance it and stay in this morning.

Well the so called "severe storm" didn't happen in the morning. It was just some drizzling and a couple wind gusts. The heavy stuff is just now starting to hit us and it's after 1. Grrrr. Oh well, decision was made and I just had to deal with it.

I planned to run on Sunday instead, and do my Sunday workout today. My Sunday workout is normally yoga, but I decided to do something a little different.

I found a strength training workout for runners on Runnersworld. It's called Ironstrength and it's by a doctor who runs marathons. I've watched some of his stuff and he gives some great advice about what to do to keep yourself injury free. This is the workout - http://www.runnersworld.com/workouts/ironstrength-workout It's a free series of videos that they say will take about 50 minutes, but that time might vary depending on the individual.

Holy. Shit.

This thing wrecked me.

He starts you off with 6 sets of 15 plyometric jump squats. I was tired by the 3rd set! Then it goes into things like rows from plank, pushups, situps, jumping lunges, this hamstring balancing thing I couldn't even do, mountain climbers, leg lifts, deadlift high pulls, balancing overhead presses and bicep curls, and finally BURPEES! I didn't even do many burpees because I was so tired. Then there were planks and stretches at the end. I was sweating, shaking, and for a minute there I felt like I might puke.

At the end of it I thought, what the hell is wrong with me, I'm a runner and I can't even do this stuff that is made for runners? Then I read through the comments on the internet and realized I am NOT the only one! This thing kicks everyone's ass. I'll definitely do it again, once a week if I can. It showed me I am not as strong as I thought I was. There is improvement to be made!


....I think I may have made a grave mistake doing this the day before my long run. But I'm still going to do it, even if it hurts to walk tomorrow!

Click Pop

I had a decent strength training session yesterday - decent because I kind of wish I had done more, but I was definitely sweating and sore at the end of it so I felt like I did something? I dunno

Tonight's run was really good, aside from the fact that I stepped on a big ass sharp rock and it really hurt. On weeknights I run around my neighborhood twice, and there's a section of it that's still under construction and not very well lit. There's tons of gravel on the road over there. I try to slow down and pay attention to the ground while I'm going through it, but I was distracted by people watching. Yes. But it was a good run otherwise with some ideal upper 40's weather.

Something cool happened - these came today!

Pro Compression - neon green, a bit bright for me but I am a fan of green so it's ok.
Bondi Band - !! These are so cute!

The Pro's feel slightly tighter and are harder to get on. The Bondi's are tight, yet softer and more comfortable. Both of them feel quite compression-y and I think they should work nicely.

I'm dealing with some knee funk lately. It's weird... my knee has been clicking and feeling tight. There has been very little pain if any. It feels tight over my kneecap but the outside of my knee kind of hurts/feels tight too. Not sure if it's an IT band issue or runner's knee, or something else entirely. The good news is there's not really any pain and it does not bother me when I run. Sitting down is the worst believe it or not. Seems the culprit of every problem I have is sitting! I'm treating this with ice, AI's, some moist heat and elevation at night, quad strengthening, stretching, and foam rolling. Hopefully this doesn't turn into something much worse. My plan is to continue running as normal, but if there's any change I might have to back off. Unfortnuately that would mean no Augusta Half. The idea of that cannot be processed by my brain at this time. Guess I'll just have to do my best and see what happens.

Today my husband found out that he's going to be starting the process of being medically discharged from the Army. He's getting out this year anyway, but since he's looking at his 4th surgery the doc has decided to start this process. This way he will be getting more benefits than he would if he were to just leave normally. He needs to get out, his injury has prevented him from advancing his career with the Army. The good news is he has a valuable profession and his job prospects are pretty good. I'm hoping this process goes smoothly and that he ends up getting everything he can out of it. He's been in pain since basic training and now he can't walk half a mile without pain. I really feel for him because I know how hard it must be to not be able to do much. I hope he gets everything he deserves.

Anyways... there's 7 miles in store for me on Saturday, provided I don't have any worsening knee issues.

Sparta-Things!

Yesterday was really interesting.

I did my slightly modified yoga in the morning - threw in some different poses for my cranky knee and such. Afterwards I was watching my favorite show (Spartacus) with my husband when he up and says "I wanna get to Lowes today to buy some workout equipment for the backyard"  You may wonder - who the hell goes to Lowes for workout equipment?

Spartans do.

My husband is going to build workout equipment in the backyard! Now, he DID mention to me a couple months ago that he would eventually be building a pullup bar and a rope climb (yay!) But this was a whole different plan.

At first he did not tell me exactly what he was building, but I knew it would be something Spartan like. So we're wandering around Lowes looking at things such as sledgehammers, aluminum piping, and sticks. We're over by the sticks when he tells me what he plans on building

• A spear toss - Spartan Race obstacle (I failed it miserably last year)
• Sandbag carry - Spartan Race obstacle
• Bucket carry - This was my idea, Lowes had plastic buckets lying around so I grabbed one. We'll fill it with rocks and carry it around. I believe longer distance Spartan Races have these - my sprint did not have one.
• Sledgehammer thing. Really we'll just be smashing it into things - sounds weird but this will be a GREAT workout
• Wooden man - This is an idea taken from my favorite show - Spartacus! It is the best TV show I have ever seen, I highly recommend it. It's about gladiators in ancient Rome who are taken from other lands and enslaved to fight in the arena. It's a very adult show with lots of gore and sex, but it has a very deep storyline and an intelligent plot. Anyway, the wooden man is a training tool the gladiators use. Picture a wooden cross that you swing a wooden training sword at to practice swordfighting. Again - seems really odd, but it will be an amazing workout.

This is going to be a great strength workout for both of us, and also provide a good way for my husband to do cardio since his foot problems prevent him from doing most conventional forms of cardio. The idea is to move in the way our bodies were meant to - something very much lacking in today's world. We're taking themes from the Spartan Race/the movie 300/Spartacus and turning them into exercise. 

The best thing about this is the guy at Lowes thought we were completely nuts when we explained all this to him. He said it was probably the strangest project he's ever heard of. Our neighbors will either think we're crazy, or super religious for having a giant wooden cross in our backyard.

Here's a glimpse of what our cart looked like once we were all done 

Not really sure when my husband is going to start building all this, but it should be alot of fun! I'm looking forward to it. It should help get me into good shape for my Spartan Races in March. I am trying to get him to do one with me. March is going to be too soon, but we're thinking of doing the Alabama one depending on what time of year they do it and how well my husband's feet heal.

Tomorrow is his birthday, and there's cake! I'll be celebrating with him and then it's right back to my routine

I might be crazy

Today I realized - I must be crazy.

The adventure of the day was a 6 mile run at the Canal. 

It was about 25 degrees outside.

Now, you might say to yourself, "But Karen, why don't you just wait until it gets warmer? Run inside?" I don't do treadmills. Plus the high for today was only 35, and I had a whole bunch of errands to do so I figured I might as well just go get it done early. 

Here's the crazy part - I loved it.

I am definitely a colder weather runner. I hate running in the heat and humidity that is the South, so I am loving this winter weather. Cold is a relative term here, because 25 is nothing to someone who's farther north, but around here people lose their minds. I loved it though... no overheating, no soaking in sweat, no questions about how I got sunburned because my face is so red for an hour afterward, you get the idea. It feels great to run in the cold. I did my 6 miles in just over an hour, trying to go at an easy pace here for these long runs. The only things I don't like about cold running are the fact that my eyes water and I can't see well, and I feel all my little aches and pains alot more. Also, I kind of regret washing my hands after using the bathroom at the Canal because they were frozen for about 10 minutes afterward. But then again I don't really regret it... don't want bathroom hands, so I'll deal with the cold.

I ran 6 miles in 25 degree weather at 9am on a Saturday. And I loved it. Yep, I might be crazy.

I just realized that I'm going to have to do that x2 at the end of next month. I guess it just really hit me today - I have to run 13 miles. That's alot!! The most I've run is 7. The thought is kind of scary, but I am going to do it and it's going to feel pretty damn amazing. I'm excited though... it feels good to have a goal in mind and something to work up to. 

I had some lunch at Moe's after my run, went and did a few things around town, and enjoyed some Starbucks on this chilly day. It's been pretty perfect so far - now I'm just really tired. Today, in addition to mountains of housework, I'm going to do a stretching session to try and work out these little naggling clicks and aches I have. I really need to stay on top of everything to avoid injury. By the end of the day I'll be spent!

Run in the darkness!

Sup!

I'm not sure what happened during my 2 days off... possibly deviation from my sleep schedule + too much sugar, but I felt crappy yesterday and I have a pretty killer headache today. Nevertheless I did my 2 miles after work. It was rainy and WINDY! Holy crap! The glass windchime on my front porch is tinkling around in the wind, a sound I am not used to hearing in windless East Georgia. This definitely affected my speed for tonight, as I was running uphill and straight into the wind. Also I had no idea how to use the backlight on my new watch! This was my first non daylight run with the watch, and the streetlights in my neighborhood weren't really enough to see my watch. So I really had no idea what my pace was and I thought I was going faster than I really was. Oh well. I figured out how to turn on the light for the next run - you have to tap the face of the watch. And tap is kind of an understatement really, you have to hit it kind of hard!

I ordered a couple pairs of compression socks. I don't have any yet but I will need them as I start running 7, 8, 9+ mile long runs. I picked up a bright green pair from Pro Compression, and I also couldn't resist this cute black pair with blue polka dots from Bondi Band. They have a bunch of printed ones, so maybe if these socks work well I'll grab some more pairs of those. Speaking of colors... recently I've realized that I lean towards certain colors when it comes to my running gear. I'm a dark colors girl... blacks, greys, purples, and BLUE. I think blue is my running color. I like any shade of blue. I do also however like a little bit of lime green here and there - only small amounts of orange, red, and maybe pink. I'm not much of a girly girl, and that fact is definitely reflected in my gear


This is becoming my go to outfit for winter running.

Tomorrow I'm taking my rest day - I have errands to run and my husband doesn't have to work, so the little time I will have at home will be spent hanging out with him. Saturday is 6 miles and more errands!