Catching up: My running year to date in a brief synapses

Well it's been a tumultuous year for running. It certainly hasn't been what I would have guessed. Here it is nearly September and I have run...2(?) races I believe. They were both on the small side and both were 2 mile fun runs. I was 2nd female in one and my daughter was first.

and 3rd female in the other.

  I was still recovering from tendonitis in my leg for most of the first part of the year and just when running was going really good again I strained a muscle in my back. That had me out of it, like everything for about 2 weeks and not running for about 4 weeks while I healed up. I still feel it sometimes,  more like a niggle than anything, but it's there!

So currently... I have a half marathon in two weeks and I am super excited about it. It will not be close to a PR attempt, but will feel good to finally be back at it. I did my last long run Sunday and it felt amazing. I was tired by the end but my legs felt strong through the run. 

Just because I haven't been running as much as I would like to doesn't mean I haven't been active! I have been using Beach Body workouts for cross training, I really like 80 Day Obsession and Liift4. I also have been on the elliptical, hiking, horseback riding and lots of fishing this summer!

Oh! Hello there!

Hello little forgotten and neglected blog.  It's been nearly a year since last I visited and poured out the details of my running life. What's been going on with me anyway?  Last I reported I was busy training for a marathon. I ran that marathon, although along the way things looked a little dicey. I managed to make my peroneus longus tendon mad at the insertion site near my knee. I am not completely sure, but my theory is one day I poked something hard into my muscle and I remember thinking

"That won't be good for marathon training"

It wasn't.  It soon became a niggle that only bugged me when running. And then it bugged me when I wasn't running. Then I took two weeks off running three weeks before the marathon because it hurt so bad.  I ran the marathon with only a slight niggle and rested for two weeks afterwards.  It felt good.  I started running again and soon was in a roller coaster of ups and downs with it being better and then not better.  Fast forward to today.  I am currently not running. 

Yep, not running. Since October 28th. I hates it. I am busy cross training, doing BeachBody workouts and using the elliptical and a spinning bike now once a week while my daughter has dance. I avoid any workouts that have excessive amounts of jumping.  Slowly I am seeing improvement. Probably not as much as I would if I just didn't do anything? I don't know, it's so hard for me to not do anything. 

I'm also running a Ragnar Relay in 6 weeks. Yeah... not sure that is the smartest thing, but Arizona in February with my running friends was hard to turn down, especially after last winter.  I did however not beg for the hardest legs this year. I'm okay with the easier ones and taking it slow. I'm planning to start some low miles in the next two weeks, just taking it easy and using run walk intervals.

Oh yeah... how was the marathon?  A minor PR but also just rough... I felt like I was on the struggle bus way too early in the race, I enjoyed it though and it was a beautiful run down a canyon into Fort Collins.  I ran about half of it with my sister, who was clearly feeling much better than I.

It was a super fun weekend though, my mom, aunt, and my kids flew down to Denver with me and we did indoor skydiving, went to the zoo and the kids ran in a Spartan race.  My daughter managed to win the girl competitive race

Because twinning is winning :)

And because Cola did all the training too.

I'm hoping this year sees me return strong to running, but if not then there are other things in life... not sure what... just kidding.. sort of.   When I started this blog then kids were a lot younger and not so busy!  Just a kick check in.  With any luck I will be back soon!

Week 4 of Marathon Training

Sunday: Tempo Run 7 miles
80 Day Obsession Total Body Core

Monday: 5.6 miles easy
80 Day Obsession Booty Day

Tuesday: Rest Day  Easy yoga in the morning before work

Wednesday: Long run day, cut back week.  2 miles easy 8 as close to goal marathon pace as I could with hills and everything and 2.25 miles easy

Thursday: Cardio Flow from 80 Day Obsession before work
Friday: Yoga 30 minutes

Saturday: Easy run 8 miles
80 Day Obsession AAA

Miles run:30.85\
Strength workouts: 4
Yoga: 2

Marathon Training Week 3

Sunday: Day 1 of 80 Day obsession Total Body Core.  This was a great arm and core workout, not too heavy on the legs and then Speed work day!

800s x 4 at about 3:40 pace and then 400s x 4 at 3:35 pace with quarter mile recoveries in between and a mile warm up and cool down

Monday: 80 Day Obsession Day 2 Booty Day...did I feel this in my booty..yes! no weights just resistance bands. then an easy run, that was really really cold!

Tuesday: Rest Day

Wednesday: Long run day. Was supposed to be 14 miles, but I made a miscalculations and a road I thought I was going to be able to use wasn't plowed and not runnable so I had to take a longer way back to my car.

Good thing it was so beautiful out and I didn't mind the extra mile

Blue skies and sunshine and temps in the low 30s, it was heavenly compared to what it has been.

Thursday: Easy recovery run 3 miles.  Working really hard to keep recovery runs and easy runs at the speed they are supposed to be, this one was probably faster than it should have been, but once I loosened up I was feeling good. and 46 degrees!! And then 20 minutes of yoga

Friday:  80 Day Obsession AAA Day

Saturday: 5 mile Easy Run in the afternoon and 80 Day Obsession Leg Day

Totals for the week

Running: 36.6

Strength: 4

Yoga: 1

Overall it felt like a good week. I am not sure how long I will keep up with the 80 Day Obsession workoutts, they are longer than I am used to and my priority is marathon training. I have always kept up with strength training.  The two workouts I didn't do this week from 80 Day Obsession were both cardio workouts...somehow I think I have the cardio part covered already.

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Marathon Training Week 2

Sunday: Progressive run. This felt like it started out slow and hard to get into the rhythm of running but by the end I was clicking right along.  Also did 21 day Fix Extreme ABC workout

Monday: was scheduled to be an easy day.. but with weather on Wednesday aka long run day, looking cold, miserable and snowy and weather Monday was looking beautiful in comparison I decided to do my long run Monday.  Best decision ever.

The weather was great and the run felt really good. I picked a hilly route and was done before the snow on the roads started melting too much and making the roads a muddy mess
Also did easy yoga in the morning.

Tuesday: 20 minutes easy yoga in the morning before work and 21 day Fix Extreme Plyo workout after work.

Wednesday: Snow blowing sideways, roads drifting and ice covered, below zero wind chills.. yep I kept it inside, especially since I have been feeling like I could be getting a cold. 60 minutes on the elliptical and P90X3 Upper Eccentric (lots of chin ups, push ups, pull ups..ow)

Thursday: Nothing. rest day, and a work day and then we had a fire meeting from 6-10 and I didn't get home and in bed until nearly 11. UGH

Friday: Was thinking to do some yoga today. but nope! I was so exhausted from being up late and waking up at 4 am, I came home from work and crashed.

Saturday: I think all the sleep loss was still hitting me as I felt head achy and had that hangover feeling despite not even drinking.  I did manage to slug out a hilly 10k... I was ever so much regretting the route

We have a lot of snow right now.

Tried out the Altra Timps this week, it wasn't love at first slip on, but after running in them I am in love, never had to think about them once.

And here is what Pete thinks about the week of training

Running: 26.3

Yoga: 2

Strength: 3

Elliptical: 60 minutes

and random.. I was looking at the Facebook page for our local running club and there on the cover photo was my son, the kid in the grey shirt looking worried and me, staring at my phone, no doubt finding my playlist.

Linking up with

The purpose of this linkup is to support active women.

Check out the rules here and the hosts Wendy and HoHoRuns

Weekly Recap: Also known as marathon training week 1

And the first week of 2018 is in the books, with it is my first official week of marathon training.

Sunday:  Elliptical for 60 minutes and P90X3 upper body. The wind chills were just more than I wanted to take on two days in a row. I had run the day before with a -22 wind chill and it was no better on this day. I just wasn't feeling it and I knew warmer weather was coming. I also didn't think the roads had been plowed yet.

Monday:  Running 6.5 miles easy -7 with the wind chill, which was a major warmup so this actually felt really good! I was also loving that there was now at least a single lane plowed through the snow to run in.

Tuesday: I got off work early and was super excited to get out and run in 23 degrees! Even if the wind chill made it only 9 degrees. My legs felt super sluggish for the first two miles but then warmed up and made the run a lot funner.

Wednesday: Long run day:  13.3 miles  Didn't mean to run this far really, but had to spend a little extra time out because Roader decided to follow his nose and took off across the creek where I couldn't follow due to the deep snow and me only wearing running shoes. He came back eventually,
as he always does.

Thursday: Just a little shake out run because I couldn't resist the sunshine.   Also 20 minutes of yoga in the morning before work.

Saturday: Speed work day! 800s x 8 with quarter mile cool downs and a half mile warm up and cool down. The 35 degrees was amazing to run in and I now finally feel climatized for winter!

Running 30.8 miles
Strength: 2
Yoga 2

And Roader wanted to introduce to you Whiskey Pete. Whiskey Pete likes to lay by Roader's heat vent, box his ears, and lay in the laps that Roader wants to. They are actually becoming pretty good friends.

How was your week?

Linking up with

The purpose of this linkup is to support active women.

Check out the rules here and the hosts Wendy and HoHoRuns

Three Things Thursday

 1. It's a beautiful and snowy world right not and after an extended amount of time in subzero temperatures the 20s yesterday for my run felt wonderful even if it was cloudy.

3. I drove down the road a ways from my house to run so we could run the road along the creek, with at least a foot of snow on the ground, trails weren't really on option, but I do like a change of scenery. Cola rides so good in the back of the car, Roader on the other hand always seems to think rules don't apply to him and he climbs over the seats to come and sit with me. 

I admit it was cracking me up a little bit to see Cola watching from the back while Roader sat up here.

I couldn't seem to get a picture with both dogs looking forward though

It was one or the other

3. Then right towards the end of the run I wasn't being as vigilant with Roader as I should have been as all of a sudden I heard him baying across the creek in the snowy hills.  I didn't have a lot of desire to track through the deep snow in my running shoes so I ran back and forth yelling for him for what felt like forever.  I would hear baying in one direction and then another and then nothing.

I knew from previous experience that he will come back and either find me or head back to the car, I wanted to get him before he got back to the car, which was at the barn, where there were lots of animals and I did not want him chasing anything there. The heifers, I was afraid, would be all too willing to run from him and make a fun game for him.

I finally saw and heard him come out on the road about a quarter of a mile ahead of me on the road and he was headed back to the car! I took of running and yelling at him, but in his focused baying state he did not hear me. 

I was a mile from the car and he was about three quarters of a mile, I thought maybe I could get closer and get him to hear me. Unfortunately it was also uphill to the barn including one very not fun to run hill.  I never did get his attention, and when I came over the last hill to the car/barn, there was Roader sitting sweetly by the car.  WHEW!

All the fussing around did add an extra 1.3 miles to my long run.


And yesterdays sunrise for a bonus