Misc Ramblings

Finally! Sheesh- I've hardly had a second to write about anything. Here's my weekend wrap-up (better late than never, or B.L.T.N.)

Saturday morning I woke up before the sun, before the rooster crowed, and why, you ask? Because I'm a crackhead- and running is my crack. The Hubs had his client event at the Farm, and we had to be there at 9:15 to help set up. Therefore, in order to fit in my long run, I was up at 5:30- on a Saturday. The forecast showed that it was going to be another blistering hot day (102), and the temp was already 79 at 5:30 a.m. (What the heck? That's just sick and wrong. It was still dark outside!!). Anyway, I was dressed, had breakfast and out the door by 5:50. My original plan was to do somewhere between 5 and 6 miles, depending on how my body (namely my knee) felt. Well, the Running Gods were certainly on my side, because I was in Thuh Zone! It still took about a mile to find my groove, but holy cow, once I found it, I felt like I could keep going all day (or at least until it got too hot). Between my warm-up and cool-down I maintained a pace between 9:15-9:45, and it felt really good. I kept zigging and zagging through the neighborhood, and when I was close to 6 miles and still feeling fine, I made an executive decision to go for the gold. I was almost home, and had made it up the hill, so I crossed over and headed to the cemetery to do laps until I reached 7 miles. And I did it! I really did it! I finally broke that 7-mile barrier. With no knee pain- wahoo!! Plus, it was my longest workout yet, and I got the shout out from my buddy Lance Armstrong. Here's the proof (look at all those calories burned-yowza):

It was a great start to the day, but from there it was all downhill. The client event turned out okay, and luckily we weren't in an actual barn. It was an old barn that had been converted, so it was modernized inside, with offices, restrooms, a kitchen, and air-conditioning (thank goodness!). However, I was suffering from massive cramps and back pain (oh yes, that lovely monthly curse), and we were rushing around trying to get everything set up. The food was good- it was catered from Famous Dave's, but I think I waited too long to eat, and it was way too much protein for my body to handle. Afterward, the Hubs and I went home and crashed in our nice,  cold basement. Of course we had leftovers for dinner (more meat and beans), and my body was starting to feel it.

Sunday we headed to the Hubs' sister's place to celebrate his nephew's birthday. His BIL grilled up steaks, and we had more leftover beans (can you see where this is going?). And yet again, it was super hot, so we headed home to hibernate in the basement. It kind of seems like all we did all weekend was eat and watch movies. But it was too hot to do anything else, even go to the waterpark.

Yesterday morning I had a decent run (4.5 miles in 46:27), although it took a bit longer to find my groove. When I came in to work, the Boss Man asked about my run, and I mentioned that it was good, but a rough start. He commented that a mile and a half seemed like a long time to find your pace, and I really had to bite my tongue (especially since my review was an hour from then). I wanted to say something nasty like, "what do you know about running? obviously nothing, since the last time you did anything even remotely resembling running was probably in the eighties" (when he would have been in the single digits- he's a year younger than I am, which I always forget) But I didn't say anything, and tried to swallow it. About the review, it didn't go all that well, as I expected, but I'm just glad it's over. Luckily it's only the year-end review that means anything as far as pay and bonus are concerned.

I had another decent run this morning (4 miles in 40:38), and I'm glad it hasn't been as hot as it was over the weekend. I think today and yesterday it was around 68 degrees. I'm not sure when my rest day will be (maybe Friday?), and I plan another long run on Saturday- something over 7 miles. Oh, and my weigh-in last Saturday was favorable, down another 0.6 lbs. With all the running I did, if my eating had been better, it probably would have been more. So this week, I will do better. I'm still trying to figure out my eating schedule, since my whole day is different now. I'm always too hungry when I get home from work, so I need to fit in an afternoon snack. Yesterday I had a piece of string cheese and a kiwi. For dinner, we had PB&J (since we were really burned out on meat) with some chips and salsa, and edamame (I know, the combination of everything seems a little weird, but it wasn't too bad).

I hope everyone else had a good weekend, and that you're enjoying the summer (and not baking in the heat, such as myself).