First I have to share this funny link about 10 things nobody tells a woman before running a marathon

OK, now let me fill you in on my weekend. Yesterday morning it was POURING RAIN! I took the doodle out quick and then we curled up on the sofa watching old episodes of Mad About You while I sipped my coffee.

Duncan was waiting patiently for the rain to subside so he could take his tennis ball outside.

tennisball

I took advantage of the weather and forced myself to do the mundane task of shredding old bills and filing new ones.

photo 1I’m terrible at keeping up with this. I want to go paperless but I need the bill to arrive in the mailbox to signal that I need to pay it. I’m a visual person.

I filled an entire bag of paper.

photo 5

All of a sudden around 3:30 the rain just stopped and the sun came out. I didn’t hesitate and grabbed my running gear and drove back to the beach where I ran on Thursday to try and get my long run in.

photo 3I wanted to hit 10 miles but at mile 7 I felt that same ache in my right knee (that i felt on Thursday) and after another mile and change it was getting more uncomfortable. I thought I’d just try and stretch a bit and then finish the last mile and change but when I squatted down I felt a sharp pain in the knee. So I did the smart thing and ended the run right there.

1004runLuckily there was no pain at all when walking so I hurried home, showered really quick and then took the doodle to the park to walk briskly for the 1.3 miles I didn’t get to run. Bingo! 10 miles even!

1004walk

Duncan has the cutest little waddle walk…

This morning I hit the road at 7am to head down to the Jersey Shore to be a spectator and supporter for my boyfriend who was running the Jersey Shore Half Marathon. It was super windy and the temps at the start were in the upper 40s. But the wind didn’t seem to impact him at all. As a matter of fact he busted out a huge PR of 1:48:49, almost 5 minutes faster than his previous best. So proud of him! And I really enjoyed the spectator friendly and scenic course. Here are some shots I took along the course (i took lots of great shots of the boy, but he is camera shy so you’ll just have to enjoy the scenery mmkay?)

IMG_0017

gorgeous views at mile 6

IMG_0019

course views!

 

IMG_0050

I stood right at the finish to see him sprint in

When I got home I I felt like I had run too. I think it was a combination of me being sore from the run yesterday and a little windburn/sunburn action too. So I took a little ibuprofen and laid down for an hour and then I was good as new. Next thing you know I was ready to take the Doodle for one final adventure before the weekend came to a close. I’ve been in a rut lately with where I take him so today I chose a new spot. We went to the trails that start out by the golf course. It’s so beautiful there.

magical

magical

photo 2

pretty!

pretty!

I love natural tree trunk/root sculpture.

I love natural tree trunk/root sculpture.

Next weekend I’ll be running the Staten Island Half Marathon. I’m going to do a short run on Wednesday and maybe another short run on Friday and that’s it. I want to make sure my knee can go 13 miles next weekend =)

So how was your weekend? 

 

Why wait for Sunday Funday when you have Friday off and it’s the perfect sunny, 68 degree crisp day?!

This morning the doodle got groomed.

Happy October!

Happy October!

Then we went for a walk in the park. On the way home I used the last of my Dunkin Donuts gift card that I got last October to get an iced caramel latte. I love my Duncan and my Dunkin!

Duncan and Dunkin

Duncan and Dunkin

With Duncan clean and fresh, I decided to change my sheets and make my bed which is a big deal for me. I hate fitted sheets. I’m usually sweating profusely by the time I complete the task. #crosstraining I got a new Duvet at Target for $30. I’m loving it!

photo 1-1

And then, since I was on a cleaning roll, I cleaned my car inside AND out! #winning

photo 3-1

This microfiber mitt is the bomb for getting all the dust off the dashboard!

Forest's first bath

Forest’s first bath

Yesterday I set out to the beach running path for a run. I really didn’t know whether I wanted to shoot for a long run or not. So I just set out to do one complete out and back to start, knowing that would be 4.5 miles. I felt great as far as endurance and speed go. My legs were turning over without issue. No heavy legs. Score! It was so good to finally feel like a 10 minute pace was closer to easy than hard. But interestingly I started to feel some knee pain just as I was completing the 4.5 loop so I stopped.

photo 2

I walked over to my car to stretch and assess when I bumped into Duncan’s boxer friend Chance and his momma.

photo 3

So I walked for an hour with them. My knee seemed ok. The walk was helping. Later on in the day Duncan and I went out to meet up with Chance and his mom again and also Athena and Zeus and their momma for a 2 mile pack walk.

Duncan and Chance

Duncan and Chance

Athena and Zeus: the Dogues and Duncan

Athena and Zeus: the Dogues and Duncan

This time though I felt some knee pain. I even felt myself walking with a bit of a limp. I have never had knee issues. Apparently webmd diagnosed me with just runners knee. I guess now that my left ankle and leg are feeling perfect my right side has decided it’s time to be the punk.

I’m not worried yet. I think it could possibly be connected to the stair master workout from Tuesday. I’m icing it and stretching and I’ll shoot for a long run this weekend.

The rest of my night was awesome. It included a homemade apple crisp, tiramisu, a delicious meal cooked by my sister-in-law and the perfect company. That.is.all 😉

I sure hope you have fun things happening this weekend. I’m actually excited about cheering on my boyfriend at his half marathon on Sunday. Now that I have had practice being a spectator. He is going to return the favor next weekend at my half marathon. #teamwork

So tell me about your weekend plans.
Anyone ever have knee pain?

So last we left off I was just wrapping up with Day 1. You can read that recap here.

Now for Day 2 and when the lack of sleep caused irritability and um….for me….stupidity.

It was now past midnight and we still had a good 100 miles to go. I was really disappointed in the exchange parking situation. It seemed that most exchanges were so crowded that parking was a bit of an issue. We ended up parking outside of the exchange wherever possible and walking a block or across the street to get there. I think perhaps the field of 500 teams was a bit too high. That really was my biggest issue with the event.

At one point in the middle of the night I waited in a long line for the Honey Bucket and just when it was my turn i realized my headlamp was not working. I didn’t want to lose my spot and have to wait on the line again so I went in to a pitch dark stall and guess what? I COULDN’T SEE SHIT! Literally. #TMILineCrosser

Right after that I went to get Valerie after her 9 mile leg. It had been raining and she had lots of malfunctioning gear.

TIP 5: Make sure you have fresh batteries in your night gear before setting out on your night leg, especially if it’s a long one. And try and remember a flashlight or headlamp when using a Honey Bucket in the dark. =)

As the sun rose and we were finally in Napa the views became so breathtaking.

slurpee in napa

during my 5th leg the team handed me this delicious slurpee! #winning

More »

I’m so giddy that October will be here next week! My birthday is in October. I LOVE this time of year. The leaves are starting to change colors and Saturday I went apple picking. It was actually in the 80s which is a little too warm for this time of year but I know the cool crisp nights are just days away.

Let me back track to Friday though. I went for my first post-Ragnar run! 4.3 miles sporting my finisher’s t-shirt. Nice and easy and how lovely to not have to shove myself into a van afterward =)

post-rag-run

More »