Ok and OK

It's been awhile! I've been busy!

A couple of days after the Hall of Fame City Challenge Half Marathon, I left for a work trip to Tulsa, Oklahoma. Since my daughter lives in Oklahoma City, I extended my trip through the next weekend to be able to visit with her and her husband. Coincidently, her husband's parentsw ere in town at the same time so we all got to visit. 

My daughter had to work on Friday so that gave me some time to explore the city. I went to the zoo which was really nice, and then to the Stockyards for lunch and to invest in some awe-then-tick cowboy boots! I got to sport them later that night at the Oklahoma State Fair!

On Saturday, my daughter too me on an almost 7 mile sightseeing run. Run is relative though. We had some bursts of running but mostly it was a very slow jog while taking pictures around the city. We finished with a refueling breakfast of breakfast burritos and margaritas. One of my most fun runs, ever.

Last weekend, I felt the need to get in a good, long run. Since it was raining on Saturday and I avoid running in the rain at almost all costs, Amanda and I ran together on Sunday. We got in a good, comfortable 10 miler.

Yesterday, 5 of us ran the Akron Marathon Relay. I had leg 3. It was a perfectly, beautiful day and I felt wonderful on my run. I maintained a sub 10 m/m pace for the 7.5 mile length!

Next up is the inaugural Cleveland Rock and Roll Half Marathon one week from today. I hope the weather is as perfect as it was yesterday!

Hall of Fame City Challenge

Well, the much maligned Hall of Fame City Challenge is in the books. Although the organizers billed it as being flatter than last year, there is no way that it was. The course was pretty brutal. It was early and dark and muggy to boot. Even though my time was not a new PR - it tied my current PR and with all things considered, I'll take it!

However, ever since I've been home, my stomach is rebelling! Good thing I have had nothing else to do today except lay on the sofa and watch the Red Zone channel and follow my Fantasy Football teams! 

I am also packing for a training trip this week. I leave Tuesday for two days of training in Tulsa, Oklahoma and then spending the rest of the week and through the weekend with my daughter in Oklahoma City. I haven't seen her since the wedding in April (unless you count Facetme) so I'm very excited! Hopefully, we'll also get to run together!

I hope you had a wonderful weekend and you have an enjoyable week ahead!

Whew! I need a Holiday!

I know. Today is Labor Day. It's a Holiday for most, as it was for me! We spent a fabulous but exhausting weekend on the Bourbon Trail. We started on Friday with a visit to Cincinnati to visit with our son for the day. It's always amazing to get to see him. 

Then, off, bright and early Saturday morning to Loretto and Bardstown to begin the Trail. Sunday was ,ore relaxing as we stayed near Versailles, Harrodsburg and Lawrenceburg. We returned to the Inn around 5:30pm and spent the evening relaxing in rocking chairs on the front porch sipping mint juleps!

I was so empowered to have a wonderful, last, long run of 12 miles last week. Yesterday, I had a good 6 mile taper week run. After I get my eating back on track this week, I think I will be ready for Sunday's Half Marathon! It seems like the last one that I ran in May was SO long ago! Sunday begins a period of four Half Marathons in the next two months. I'm ready for the challenge!

I hope everyone had as wonderful of a weekend as I did!

Almost There!

My next Half Marathon is only THREE weeks away! I had a really good 11 mile run yesterday. My legs are a little sore today. It just makes me look forward to my taper week in two weeks. A 12 mile run coming up this weekend then we'll be celebrating Labor Day on the Bourbon Trail in Kentucky! I'm excited that our trip corresponds with my taper week. I'm really looking forward to a run in Kentucky. It was beautiful running there last year but I'm glad to only be doing about 6 miles or so instead of giving up 2+ hours of my vacation. 

I'm still working on my clean eating diet - or should I say, lifestyle! It's a work in progress but it has been going really well! Dinner today was salmon, corn on the cob and cabrese salad. I did need to have a small glass of wine. I haven't researched if wine is "clean" or not but I'm guessing it's probably not. 

I'm really hoping that next weekend's 12 mile run goes as well as the 11 miler this weekend! Have a great week, everyone!

Good Times!

It's been a really good couple of weeks. I am right where I want to be in my training for my upcoming Half Marathon on September 8th. I got in a good - and pretty speedy - 10 miler yesterday. Hoping to get in two weeknight workouts this week and an 11 miler on Saturday. 

My "clean eating" is going pretty well but with the increase in my mileage, I am hungry ALL the time! I need to be really careful about what I eat when I feel like I am starving! I'm stocked up on Kind bars and I am trying to stick to some organic trail mix. Neither of which are very low in calories but at least they are "clean." One hurdle at a time!

I signed up for the 2014 Flying Pig half marathon this week. The Flying Pig has been my favorite race to date and I'm really excited to be running it again!

What is your "go to" snack when you are increasing your running mileage?

Hall of Fame Run

I was so happy to have achieved my goal of under 10 m/m pace only to come in second to last in my age group. 

On to the next race. My favorite distance in my favorite city. But it's a brand new race and there is a lot of questions in the community about how well it will be organized. No matter what, 6 weeks from today, I'll be running the inaugural Hall of Fame City Challenge Half Marathon.

I'm actually excited to get back into my longer distance training. I had a HORRIBLE (but fun) weekend of eating and drinking. Tomorrow, starts over with eating clean and running long.  I hope when you get off track, you can easily jump right back on board!

A really good week!

My next "big" race is a Half Marathon on September 8th. I'm just starting to ramp up my mileage in preparation. During this time of some shorter runs, I have been focusing on other areas of my fitness. One thing that is going really well is my ongoing effort to eat clean. Other than my protein bars that I have a couple times per week and my ice cream splurges, I have been doing really well! Weekends are still bad. I did enjoy a few beers and some Swedish meatballs during our Ikea run this weekend but I'm pretty proud of myself!

Another new resolution that I started this week - the hottest week of the year, mind you - is to walk one mile everyday at lunch.i read a recent article in Runner's World magazine called "Sitting is the new Smoking" and it scared the crap out of me. I work in a typical office at a desk in a cube all day. I have known that sitting is bad but I always kind of felt exempt since a run several times per week. I also, recently purchased, an Up by Jawbone to help me know when I've been sitting too long and to count my steps. I was surprised how many days that I don't even come close to 10,000 steps.

There is a 1/4 mile walking path around a pond in the office park where I work. It's one building away and, even walking slow so as not to get too sweaty, I can get a mile in in around 25 minutes max. As the weather cooks, I'm sure it will me much faster. That still leaves plenty of time to eat. I'm proud to report that I did my mile everyday this week! I'm looking forward to cooler weather this week and making it two weeks in a row!

Do you have a desk job? How do you keep active during the day?