A good run

23. March 2016 · Write a comment · Categories: running · Tags: , , , ,

Hello,

Hope you are all safe and sound. Working from home does have its drawbacks. When there’s a terrible global event (yesterday’s terrorist attack on the airport and metro in Brussels) there is constant news coverage. I was sick and full of anxiety and sadness all before starting my day. I handled a couple of urgent work tasks and then headed out for a run to get away from the television.

It turned out to be a really good run.

A good run

A good run

I really have no idea what I did differently. Only thing I can think of is that now that I’ve reached 10 miles for the long run the weekday runs that are 3-4 miles will just inherently feel easier.

Maybe it was my lucky PR shirt. I wore this shirt when I PR'ed at the 2014 NJ Marathon

Maybe it was my lucky PR shirt. I wore this shirt when I PR’ed at the 2014 NJ Marathon

Sunday I went to this fun trampoline place called Sky Zone with Mr. SOTSS and his oldest daughter. It was so much fun. I bounced a lot. We got a kick out of my hair during the slow mo.

Monday morning I woke up to the first full day of Spring with a blanket of snow.

IMG_1874It was so pretty but within a few hours it had all melted. Monday also marked 7 years since the day I picked up Duncan at 11 weeks old. Crazy!

On the drive home from western PA. I drove 8 hours round trip to get this munchkin

On the drive home from western PA. I drove 8 hours round trip to get this munchkin

And 7 years later he’s still attached at the hip (or maybe i’m attached to his hip.)

hipsters

hipsters

He is so good in the car. Just relaxes until we pull into the driveway and I tell him “we’re home”.

Well, I’ve got a busy day so I’m off to work.work.work.

Happy Humpday.

How was your last run? 3 fun things happening in your life right now.

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Lucky Me—10 miles

19. March 2016 · Write a comment · Categories: labradoodle, running, Uncategorized · Tags: , , , ,

Well, I planned to post on St. Paddy’s Day to tell you all how lucky I felt even though I’m not Irish but then I got requests from 3 clients for graphic design work. Ironically that’s part of why I feel so lucky. Freelance life can be scary and I’m still unsure how long I can make this last but for now I’ve got a few more months of bills covered thanks to these new assignments.odoodlesIn other non-running news, Duncan and I both got haircuts and blowouts…

blowout-twins

I had a meeting in the city Wednesday morning with curls and got my haircut later that afternoon.

Curls to start the day...

Curls to start the day…

And then after 15 minutes walking outside just before a thunderstorm the pin straight became loose waves.

a little humidity is all it takes

a little humidity is all it takes

I also took Duncan to the vet. He’s got a lump on his chest that I was concerned about.

Chillin' out in the waiting area at the vet

Chillin’ out in the waiting area at the vet

The groomer mentioned to me that it felt like it got bigger so I decided to have the vet tell me what it was. 90 percent chance it’s a benign fatty tumor called a lipoma. We’ll check it again in May when he goes for some routine shots. Vet said he would biopsy it if it got larger. Needless to say after the good news I bought him a toy for waiting almost an hour in the waiting room at the vet’s.
duncan-zebra

So after my lucky 11:11 paced run last Tuesday, I ran again on Thursday and boy was I happy when my 10:40 pace felt relatively easy.
zippy-miles

And today I got in my long run which was the first double digit run I’ve completed since running the NYC Marathon last November!

Enjoying the last of the blowout.

Enjoying the last of the blowout.

This just might be the last of winter running gear days for me

Speaking of “lasts” this just might be the last of winter running gear days for me

Yay! Double digits!

Yay! Double digits!

It was in the 30s but the Daffodils have already sprung up. We might get snow tomorrow. Hopefully they will survive

It was in the 30s but the Daffodils have already sprung up. We might get snow tomorrow. Hopefully they will survive

The first 5 miles were fine but the second 5 were really hard. I had an attitude adjustment though and didn’t beat myself up over it. Frankly this SHOULD feel hard. It’s been 5 months since I ran double digits. I’ve lost a lot of long-distance fitness through the winter and I wouldn’t have it any other way. I was busy skiing, snow tubing, snow shoeing, sledding, hiking and running shorter distances this winter. But now I’m ready for my Spring races, I’m ready to build up my mileage.

Well I better sign off. I’m headed out to see Mr. SOTSS and his family. His daughter is performing with her choral group in a concert. Have a great weekend and enjoy these adorable photos of Duncan before you go…

stretch

stretch

stole my pillow

stole my pillow

not amused

not amused

When he looks at me like this i melt

When he looks at me like this i melt

Fresh from the groomer

Fresh from the groomer

Are you excited for Spring? Have any Spring races on your calendar? Doing anything fun this weekend?

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Running pace vs effort

16. March 2016 · 2 comments · Categories: labradoodle, running · Tags: , , ,

Hey ho!

So the bricks on my feet have gotten a bit lighter. I’m still feeling sluggish but definitely not like that 7 miler this past Friday.

I ran 4.5 miles around Mr. SOTSS’ neighborhood on Sunday and while the pace was similar my effort level was way less.

similar pace but way less effort

similar pace but way less effort

I was also excited to see some signs of Spring.

Purple crocuses popping up!

Purple crocuses popping up!

We took the dogs for a stroll in the woods too.

this tree stump spoke to me

this tree stump spoke to me

who's coming and who's going

who’s coming and who’s going

Duncan has been perfecting his posing on the stairs this week.

curled like a cat

curled like a cat

half sit half stand

half sit half stand

When I came home from Mr. SOTSS’ house I realized I grabbed his earbuds on accident. They were all tangled on his kitchen counter and I just scooped them up. Luckily he has an extra pair and hasn’t dumped me over this. 🙂

not my proudest moment

not my proudest moment

I ran another 4 this morning.

11:11 pace...make a wish

11:11 pace…make a wish

Today I hit the magical 11:11 average pace when I walked in the door it was exactly 11:11. Double wishes!

Do you make wishes at 11:11? I’ve been doing this since high school.

IMG_1725

 

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brick feet and there actually IS an “i” in team

12. March 2016 · 4 comments · Categories: running, Uncategorized · Tags: , , ,

Hi folks—TGIF!

The week caught up to him

The week caught up to him

So today I chose to get my long run out of the way for a few reasons.

  1. I had a fairly light day workwise which meant I could afford to run during the day.
  2. It was really lovely weather….breezy and low 60s.
  3. My Saturday will be really jam packed and I prefer to spend time Sunday with Mr. SOTSS’ and the doggies. (I still might run a short 3ish miler though).

I only had 7 miles to cover as this is my drop back week (have I mentioned how happy I am to be training for a half marathon and not a full this Spring?!). From the first step I knew I was doomed. Each turnover felt like I was trying to pull my foot out of quicksand. But brick by brick I just kept muddling through. I wanted so bad for this run to feel effortless. I even had this wild idea that I’d tack on a few extra miles too. Yeah, nope.

IMG_1665

Finally after 5 miles I walked a bit. I looked at my watch and realized my 11:10 pace had now slowed to 12:10 and I wanted to just walk the last 2 miles. But something made me blurt out loud “Really Sally, what difference does it make what your pace is, just go. You might be running solo but you’re part of something bigger”. What kind of philosophical mumbo jumbo did I just say?

It took me a minute to process. I was out with my girlfriends the other night and started to vent about how social media can make me feel like a failure, like I’m not dedicated enough. I see these runners in my feed who are running at 4am while their family sleeps because it’s the only time they can run. I see posts from speedy runners, super clean eaters, etc etc.

It was in the midst of my struggle to just chug through that I realized this is MY story….and this will be shared for others to read. And you know what? I think that’s really important for this large, virtual running community that I like to think of as a team. I owe it to my readers/followers to be honest and share my struggles. We are all here to support and inspire each other. Not to feel envy or to feel inferior.

I am not going to try and dissect what went wrong here. I’m going to be grateful that I was able to get those 7 miles in.

Someday I won’t be able to run anymore. Today was not that day…

 

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