Marathon Madness Monday: Week 2

Good morning and happy Monday.  It is an especially happy Monday for me as I am on vacation!  :)

Oh my goodness, it has been HOT here lately!  It's awesome lake weather, but can be challenging for running.  Last week I did most of my runs in pretty high temps.

Case and point - here I am after my 5:15 am 4 mile run.

 Yah, just a little bit sweaty.

Hot weather is not my favorite weather to run in, but you can safely run in high temps if you are careful about it. In fact, I think running in the heat last summer made me a really strong runner and helped me PR in the cool fall temps!  But you have to be smart about running in the heat.  Here are some of the things I do:

1.  Hydrate before your run.  On days when it is especially warm, I try to double my usual water intake.  If you start out dehydrated, it's going to be a rotten (and risky) run.

2.  Carry water.  Even if I am just going out for a 3 mile run, I carry water (unless there is water close by).  If I am running more than 30 minutes, I carry some gatorade and drink gatorade right after the run to help hydrate myself. 

3.  Take it easier.  This is hard to do at time as us runners tend to like to push ourselves, but it's not smart to do that on especially hot days.  Maybe do a run/walk combo instead of running without taking a break.

4.  Replace what you sweat.  Some people will weigh themselves before and after a run to figure out how much water they lost on the run.  Last year, one of our coaches lost 8 POUNDS during the course of a run.  That is extreme, of course, but the heat index was 110 that day.  You need to replace what you sweat during your run. It can be challenging to do this because often times when your body is dehydrated, you feel nauseated or don't feel like drinking, but you just have to drink whether you feel like it or not. I will sometimes add cucumbers or lemons to my water on days like this to make the water taste extra good, which tends to result in me drinking more.

So these are some basic and rather obvious suggestions, but they are still important to consider.  For more information about running in the heat, check out this post by Shut Up and Run.

Here's how the training broke out for me.

Monday:  6.25 mi @ 10 min pace - we did hill repeats.  It was my idea as there was no prescribed workout.  The weather was awesome so I figured we should do a tough workout before the weather got super steamy!

Tuesday:  8.5 mi on the stationary bike, 15 minutes of strength training

Wednesday: 6.5 miles in the heat.  The heat index was above 100 so we took it easy and did a run walk combo.  Our pace was 10:45, so very slow for me, but I really did not care as it was such a hard run.

Thursday:  4 sweaty miles before work, pace of 9:38 (it was 81 and humid when I started at 5:15).  Still felt pretty sluggish from the hot run the night before so didn't push it.

Friday:  Rest

Saturday:  Long run of 12 miles at 9:52 pace.  I felt great on this run.  It was hot and I felt a little sluggish around 10.5, but all in all it went great!

Sunday:  Rest

Training tally:

Week 2:  28.75
Training to Date:  52.75

If you run/exercise in the heat, what are some suggestions you have for training in the heat?

Looking Forward - the Vacation Edition

Today is my last day of work until my vacation!  I am SO excited!  I have not had a day off from work that wasn't spent studying since January (and those days were spent recovering from surgery, so don't really count), so I am totally OVERDUE for this time off.  I'll be taking about 1.5 weeks off:  I'll spend the first 5 days at my parents' lake home, and then I fly out next Thursday for Amber's wedding!  So excited!

Here's a list of some of the things I'm looking forward to doing on this vacation:

- Lounging on the dock with a good book - I have lots to choose from as 4 physical books and 4 e-books became available this week!!  The library makes this whole not buying books thing very easy!
- Seeing all of my nephews and my niece.  I haven't seen my Chicago niece and nephew since Thanksgiving.  I will only get one day with them, but that is better than nothing!
- Seeing my sister Abby.  She lives in Arizona, so I only see her a couple of times a year.  But being apart makes me really appreciate the times I do get to see her.
- Catching up with my aunt and uncle from California.  I haven't seen them for almost 3 years.  I can't wait to sit on the dock and sip margaritas and rhubarb slush (a family summer classic!) with them.
- Playing scrabble with my grandma.  She will inevitably kick my butt!  I think I can beat her at bananagrams, though!  
- Finally meeting Kelly and Anais and their significant others.  After reading their blogs for years, I already know them, but meeting them face-to-face will be awesome!
- Getting a lot of quality time with Amber.  We will be sharing hotel rooms for most of this trip.  Also, Anais, Amber, and I will be doing a long run together on Saturday.  Amber ran the Vancouver marathon in May so knows exactly where to take us for a great run.
- Spending time in BC - which is one of my favorite areas to visit!
- Last, but certainly not least, being a part of Amber's wedding.  It is such an honor to be asked to be a bridesmaid.  Amber has been such a low key, calm bride; I hope I am like her when/if I get married some day!  I just know the wedding day is going to be so much fun!

I'll be posting sporadically until I leave on Thursday.  After that, I likely won't post until I return.  But you can always check out Amber or Kelly's blog as I have a feeling one or both of them will do some posts when we are together!

Giving Gardening a Go

I have never had a green thumb.  No, really, I am not being modest.  Go read this post where I almost killed this plant that I took home from my grandpa's funeral.

Those leaves are not supposed to be dropping like that...  It was like the tree on Charlie Brown Christmas - just sad

 My mom rescued the plant and it's alive and thriving.

You see, she has always been a masterful gardener.  Growing up, I had NO IDEA people actually bought produce in grocery stores.  Most of what we ate came form our garden, from potatoes to carrots to green beans to tomatoes to squash to - well, you name it, we grew it.  Truth be told, I was a whiny little child that did not appreciate the garden as it represented work.  Oh how I would whine and mope when my mom would ask me to go pick some green beans for dinner.  Now I am an adult and am envious of the produce my younger self had access to! 

This year, though, I decided to move outside of my comfort zone and give gardening another go.  My patio is pretty small, but there is certainly room for some plants.  I got a bit of a late start as I didn't get a chance to shop for plants until after the CFA exam, so I bought these little guys in their 'teen' stage of life.

Day 1 at Casa de Lisa.  L to R:  Roma tomatoes, green pepper, romaine lettuce, and a beef steak-type tomato

There was a week there where I really thought they were not going to make it...  My tomato plants started to yellow and they started to droop like the plant I had nearly killed in the past...  But then I exchanged a flurry of tweets with San and Kyria, who are also raising patio gardens, and I figured out I was actually under watering everything. After changing my watering routine from every other day to daily, the plants bounced back.  Phew.

They appear to be thriving now, which makes me so excited!

So imagine my excitement when I went to water them last week and found a bunch of little tomatoes!!

It's the little things in life, I tell you.  I've got about 8 tomatoes growing, which makes me so happy as I eat tomatoes like they are apples. 

I just love the outdoor space of my condo.  This is the first place I've lived where I have actually made great use of my outdoor space.  From the little bistro set where I've entertained family and friends to my new Weber charcoal grill, to my little patio garden, it's the perfect little outdoor space for me.  And of course, the view sure doesn't hurt.  ;)

Luckily, a good friend will be taking care of my plants while I am gone.  Her husband is apparently a watering fanatic so I know they are in good hands.  :) 

Do you have a backyard or patio?  Do you have a green thumb? 

Superfood Sunday

Greetings and happy Tuesday.  4 days until my vacation starts!  :)  Woo hip!  With a vacation in sight, there isn't anything that can bring me down!  Add in the fact that I am going to see "Roman Holiday" on Thursday with The Running Historian, and well, this week is shaping up to be awesome!

You know what else is awesome?  Some of the foods I've been eating lately - especially this past Sunday.  I find that the more active I am, the more my body craves foods that are good for me.  That was definitely the case this past weekend.

Between my gluten intolerance and the fact that I try to avoid dairy most days (I have it about once a week), people often ask, "what DO you eat?"  So I thought I'd share some of what I ate this past Sunday.


1.  Morning Snack:  I used my new magic bullet (purchased with a gift card I've been hoarding for 18 months) to make a smoothie with fresh strawberries, blueberries, banana, OJ, and ice.

2.  Post-yoga snack: A diced avocado with salt and pepper.  This is one of my favorite snacks. Yes, avocados are a higher calorie/fat snack, but I feel justified in snacking on these given the number of calories I am burning!  Plus, it's a 'good' fat that your body needs!
 

3.  Late Lunch:  I grilled salmon for the first time and it turned out great!  I rubbed it with a little olive oil, and added salt and pepper, capers, fresh lemon juice, and a couple of lemon slices, wrapped it in foil, and grilled it on each side for about 3-5 minutes.  It turned out perfect!

The filet was a generous portion so I saved half of it for a dinner later in the week, and pair the salmon with some grilled zucchini.  

In addition to the food shown above, I also had toast with peanut butter, coffee, chips & guacamole, and a lot of pickles!!

So there you have it - some great gluten free + dairy free foods that are healthy and satisfying! 

Do you tend to eat more healthy foods when you are more active?  Have you made any new, healthy recipes lately?  I am hoping to try a few new recipes when I am at my parents' lake home over the 4th!

Marathon Madness Monday: Week 1

The first week of marathon training is in the books - and it was a good one!  My mileage is starting off on the low end, but I am happy with the number of miles I ran this week.  My run club is on a hiatus until this Saturday, so the workouts are informal right now.  I ran with them on Monday and Saturday, and ran on my own on Wednesday.

The exciting part of my week is that I tried something new!  Yoga!  I had taken classes at a gym, but had never been to a yoga studio.  One of the studios in Minneapolis (which has a location 2 blocks from my condo) offers a week of free yoga, so I decided to take advantage of it since I'd be around this weekend. 

I took my first class on Tuesday and I was so nervous! I sent Amber a bunch of messages with questions about what to expect, what to wear, etc.  I ended up going with this outfit:  a Lulu Lemon fitted tank (purchased at the outlet last fall) and fitted pants.

I may not know what I am doing, but at least I look the part!

The verdict?  I absolutely loved it!  I fit in as many classes as my schedule would allow this week (4).  Now I have to think about whether I can make room in my budget for more classes.  It is certainly not cheap, but I think it would really compliment my training.  I know I could practice on my own at home, but there is something special about going to an actual studio and having someone coach you through all the various moves and positions - and correcting you when you are doing it wrong.  I liked the deep stretching of the vinyasa class - and I got my butt totally and completely kicked by the Yoga Sculpt class, which ended up being more of a boot camp style class with things like mountain climbers, burpees, and tons of push-ups (hello, weak upper body).

Anyways, back to the training recap, here is how the week broke out for me:

Monday - 5 miles at an easier pace (9:40) - it was 90+ degrees and super humid.  It felt like I was running through steam, so I took it pretty easy.

Tuesday - 9 miles on a stationary bike, 60 minute yoga class

Wednesday - 7 miles ran on a hilly path at a 9:20 pace.  This was a challenging run as it was so humid but I was really happy with my pace.

Thursday  - Rest

Friday - 60 minute yoga class

Saturday - 12 miles at a slow 10:00 pace.  I used to dread my long runs, now they have become one of my favorite parts of my week!  It helps to have good company out there on the running paths!  I got home, had an avocado as a snack, and headed to a 75 minutes yoga sculpt class.  Big mistake!!  I won't do this class after a long run ever again! I clearly need a fresh body to make it through this intense class!

Sunday - 60 minute yoga class

****

All in all, I am really happy with how this week went.  Ideally I would like to run 3-4 times and bike 1-2 times; this week, I ran 3 times, biked once, and did 4 yoga classes, so I feel good about everything I fit in.  I am definitely excited for this training session.  I have some work to do as I lost some speed over the winter/spring, but I am ready for the challenge.

Training Total:

Week 1:  24 miles

Have you ever tried yoga?  If so, do you do it on your own or go to a class?  Are you able to do the crow pose?  That is the one pose I absolutely COULD NOT do!!

Christmas in June!

Greetings and Happy Friday, everyone!  I hope it's been a good week for everyone!

Last night I hosted a little party for the group of people I worked with.  We referred to it as Christmas in June.  Why?  Well, we never got our act together around the holidays...  2 of us were studying for the CFA, I had sinus surgery, and life was just so full for everyone then, so we decided to push our party off until June.

I have a great patio area with pool and grills, so volunteered to host right away.  We made it a family event, as my boss and co-worker both have kids.  It was such a fun night!  The kids swam like fish and the adults had a great time.  I have no pictures of the food because my co-workers do not know I have a blog, and it would be been a little weird to start snapping pictures of the food.  ;)  Plus it was a very informal event!  I provided brats, hot dogs, burgers, and all the fixing, and everyone else brought a side or dessert to share.  Everyone went home full and happy, I think.

This party is sort of the end of an era for me.  Sounds dramatic to say this, but I have sat in this little pod for the last 1.5 years and that set up is coming to an end.  I work on an open-air trading floor, which means we all sit very close together and there are no cube walls - so you really can hear everything your co-workers are saying and there is zero privacy.  Which means you really get to know people quite quickly.  But soon I will be moving over to join my new team, most likely after my vacation.  I am glad we got to all get together before I move.  Granted, we will still work on the same floor, I will just be in a different area.  So in the grand scheme of things, it's really not that big of a deal.  It's a big change for me as I am joining a group of 3 men that have worked together for YEARS and have never had a female in their group...  and I know I won't really 'click' as well with this group, but I am going to make the most of it and in the immortal words of Tim Gunn, "make it work." 

I hope you all have a great weekend!  I am staying home for a change which I am really happy about!  I need to get a packing list together for my trip for Amber's wedding as I will probably arrive home from the lake the morning of the day I fly out - so I need to be very organized!!  Besides that, I will do a long run with my group and get together with a friend I haven't seen in nearly a year!!

What are you up to this weekend?  Do you have a holiday party at work? 

Book Review: Saving Ruth

I received this book as part of a TLC Book Tour.  Saving Ruth, by Zoe Fishman, definitely falls under the category of a "coming-of-age" story.  As the book opens, the main character, Ruth, has just returned home to Alabama for the summer after her freshman year of college in Michigan. So much has changed since she left home for college - most notably, she has developed an eating disorder. While she should be focused on saving herself, much of her attention is drawn to her brother, who seems listless and withdrawn, and the dynamics of her empty-nest parents.

It was pretty difficult to read her inner dialogue with herself over her struggles with food. Luckily, I don't personally know what it is like to struggle with an eating disorder, but I thought the author did a great job of showing what it is like to go through something like that. The author herself had struggled with an eating disorder in college, so her personal experience lent an air of authenticity to that aspect of the book.

Over all it was a fast, enjoyable read, and I gave it 3 stars on Goodreads. It made me think about my college years. I never did return to my parents home after I left for college as I opted to stay in the city where my University was located so I could take summer classes and work.  I love my parents and the home they created for me, but I do not love my small town roots, so I am glad I did not have to return to the town they lived in. I think I would have struggled even more than Ruth did - albeit for different reasons. I did spend one summer at my parents' lake cabin, though, after studying abroad in Australia and that was definitely a VERY difficult summer as I was dealing with a bit of reverse culture shock and the post-study abroad blues - which seem to be pretty common, at least among the people I've talked to.

Did you move home for any summers during college? Did you have trouble acclimating back to life in your home town?

I received a complimentary copy of this book from TLC Book Tours.  I was not compensated for this review, and the opinions are my own.