Hi and Happy Monday!

I’ve been thinking more about my goals for 2017 and in addition to wanting to run with friends for that “conversational pace” at least once a month I also want to PR in the 5k. The reason behind this one is that I really want to be able to run just one time with Mr. SOTSS during a race. He agreed to slow down to a 9 minute pace for me if I can speed up to it. My current PR is 9:12 average pace so I just need to shave 12 seconds per mile from that.

This past weekend we ran the Big Chill 5k and while I wasn’t trying to run hard I ended up feeling good and finished in 30:11 (a 9:39 average pace per mile). img_7833

I love the long sleeve shirts they give. I now have 3 and use them for pajamas

I love the long sleeve shirts they give. I now have 3 and use them for pajamas

img_7839This was my 3rd time running the race and about the 8th time for Mr. SOTSS. It’s an awesome charity event. The “entry fee” is an unwrapped toy valued at $15 or more.

entry fee toys

entry fee toys

In 2014 I had to walk it because I had a sprained ankle. And last year I ran about a minute faster than this year finishing in 29 minutes. The entire morning was great except that Jane and her hubby weren’t there this year. But I did see my friend Amy quickly before and after.

The gymnasium at Rutgers University was packed with runners checking in. The back wall is all the toys donated

The gymnasium at Rutgers University was packed with runners checking in. The back wall is all the toys donated

I ran behind some elves

I ran behind some elves

After the race we went for breakfast and I was so happy for a cup of coffee because the cup I made before leaving the house in the morning had to get tossed thanks to some curdled cream….boo!

coffee...YES!

coffee…YES!

 

Other than the race Mr. SOTSS watched me put up my tree this weekend.

Keeping me company while I decorate my tree

Keeping me company while I decorate my tree

My newest ornament from my trip to Banff in September :)

My newest ornament from my trip to Banff in September 🙂

All done!

My tree is up!

We took the dogs for a few great walks in the park.

happy Chester

happy Chester

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me and my shadow....and my love and his shadow

me and my shadow….and my love and his shadow

I wonder if I look as happy as him when I run

I wonder if I look as happy as him when I run

We also went to a convention in Atlantic City for business but but enjoyed a nice meal and time away for a quick overnight. And I won $100 on the slots in the casino! Woot woot!

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pub food…yum!

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$100 payout in the casino and an overnight away with my sweets…. #winning

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How was your weekend? 

TGIF! Let the weekend begin!

Seriously….I feel like my eyes need to be propped open with toothpicks. It’s been a long week back after my Adirondacks vacation last weekend. I’m only in week 3 of this new full-time job­‑and with the car accident, complete routine shift, and not yet really feeling like my role is defined yet at the job, I’ve been on edge, unsure, more tired than usual and just feeling a little out of sorts.  

I did manage to get in my 2 weekday runs. The first was a 3-miler on Tuesday night after work.

Post work 5k

Post work 5k

It was what felt like a lovely Summer night even though we’re still a month away from Summer. The temps in New York have been reaching 88-92 each day. Yikes #NotReadyfortheSweat

I have to say that running in the evening for a short 3 miles is perfect. Enough to get out some of the anxiety but it takes up only 30ish minutes which leaves me time for hanging with the doodle and doing some freelance work or chores. 

This morning I was up and out the door at 6am for another 3 miler. It was hot and humid and I was drenched in just 34 minutes.

Why does the color gray show sweat so much

Why does the color gray show sweat so much

Drenched!

Drenched!

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Other than running, walking the dog and drinking too much coffee the rest of my week was spent on the sofa trying to relax and regroup for the next day.

more coffee

more coffee

Strolling the neighborhood for a few miles each night.

Strolling the neighborhood for a few miles each night.

I’ve been dvr-ing Ellen and watching it at night and I’ve been loving that. 

On Wednesday, after work I drove straight to the mall to get a birthday gift for Mr. SOTSS’ daughter. She’s going to be 13! While I was there I saw there was a Nathan’s in the food court and just couldn’t resist. Those fries are my absolute favorite. 

I heart Nathan's fries!

I heart Nathan’s fries!

I’ve got a super busy Memorial Day weekend starting with the Spring Lake 5 tomorrow morning. I can’t believe I’m actually going to be running. Two years ago I registered but got injured and ended up taking Duncan down with me to spectate which was so much fun.

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I also met Mr. SOTSS for our second date later that day. We wanted the dogs to meet and walked around a park by my house. It started to rain and Duncan was annoyed because he hates walking in the rain. I remember turning around and whispering to him “C’mon Duncan, we’re on a date!” 

Post date

My loyal “wingman”

 I had so much fun spectating that I went again last year to do the same.

he would rather spectate me on the sidelines. LOL.

he would rather spectate me on the sidelines. LOL.

The race is 5 miles and I don’t run a ton of races that distance. My current PR is 49:10 (9:50 per mile pace) which is from 2011. The weather will be warm and as I mentioned at the beginning of this post, I’m just feeling the effects of the transition to working full time in an office again so I really have no expectations or goals for the race other than to see and hug my running peeps. I miss them!

The rest of the weekend will be a back and forth between hanging with Mr. SOTSS and his daughters for fun stuff and home to get some freelance work done and get some chores out of the way. I’m also planning on meeting up with another friend for brunch and of course cuddling as much as I can with my furr kid.

This was the face that said goodbye to me this morning

This was the face that said goodbye to me this morning

I hope you all enjoy your weekend as well. 

What’s the weather by you today?

Any exciting weekend plans?

I swear I don’t know what is wrong with me but I’ve just been so lethargic and not into any kind of exercise lately let alone running. But tonight, I forced my butt out for a decent walk with the dog when I got home from work and something magical happened. After about 20 minutes I felt the desire to pick up the pace and before you knew it I was sprinting a few blocks here and there. I think this is a sign that I just need a little more time to get back to business.

He's thrilled that I've finally decided that we could walk for more than 10 minutes after the sun sets.

He’s thrilled that I’ve finally decided that we could walk for more than 10 minutes after the sun sets.

I just ran 2 blocks!

I just ran 2 blocks!

a little moonlight

a little moonlight

The best part was that I finally hit 10,000 steps today.

FullSizeRender 915 days ago I had a 60,000 step day thanks to the NYC Marathon and since then I think I’ve reached 10,000+ maybe 2 or 3 days….one of which was the day we went hiking. Even this past weekend I took Duncan for a walk at the park both days but we didn’t go for more than 30 minutes because I just felt so fatigued.

Short walk Sunday

Short walk Sunday

Driving to the park

Driving to the park

Short walk Saturday

Short walk Saturday

I slept 8+ hours each night of this past weekend so maybe that had something to do with tonight’s burst of energy.

This is all very encouraging.

One sad piece of news. I think my Keurig is finally dead. So tonight I whipped out my handy dandy percolator and you know what? I missed it!

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I hope you all have a great week.

Are you a coffee drinker? Do you do drip, pods, k-cups, french press, percolator, Starbucks, Dunkin Donuts???? 

OK,

I realized there’s no point in going down into that pit until I actually know what I’m dealing with. So today on my lunch break I decided to be proactive and search for articles that pertain to injuries and grief. God I love the Internet! Look at this great article.

And tonight I was reminded that other things make me just as happy as running:

We all know I experienced some major grief after my husband died (and frankly I think it sort of complicates all losses in my life hence me being a drama queen over this foot ailment), so if I could get through that, surely I could get through a few missed races.

So I thought I’d take a positive spin on this all and present to you a list:

10 things I love to do other than running

1. Hang with my dog

good morning

good morning

2. Eat sweets

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3. Enjoy a sunset

Sunset and a doodle

Sunset and a doodle

4. Take pictures

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5. Wear a Tiara

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6. Laugh so hard that I cry

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7. Drink wine

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8. Stop and smell the roses carnations

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9. Drink Coffee

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10. Hug a friend

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Question:Tell me what 10 things you would still enjoy doing if you couldn’t run.