skip to main |
skip to sidebar
Oh my gosh – we have had cold and wind and a bit of snow and precious little sun. Granted, it is worse in other parts of the country, so I really shouldn’t complain. Instead, these are the things that I like about winter…- A fire in the fireplace – is there anything more cozy?
- A warm, down-filled blanket
- Homemade chili
- Scarves!
- Fresh baked cookies
- Catching up on movies
One thing I’m not such a fan of is the treadmill. Dread-mill. Ugh. But at least for this week I’ve been diligent. I find that if I entertain myself I can do better so I’ve come up with two workouts that I tolerate pretty well:
Workout 1: 8 to 10 minute warm up then 3 sets of 3 x 3 repeats. 3 minutes at a fast clip, 3 minutes slow and repeat 3 or 4 times. End with an 8 to 10 minute cool down.
Workout 2: 8 to 10 minute warm up then hill repeats. 2 minutes at a pretty sharp incline (5 to 7 range); 2 minutes slow run or fast walk and repeat for 4 or 5 times. End with an 8 to 10 minute cool down. (I did this one yesterday and woke up in the middle of the night when the snow plow went by; I jumped and the back of both of my legs cramped up. Ouch!)
I’ve also taken advantage of the rest of the gym a bit more this week and have been doing more strength and core work. If I can remain diligent throughout the spring I may be able to reach my goal of a faster half-marathon.
In most cases, yes, but not in the world of a runner. That’s ok, I’m going to do two half-marathons anyway, even if I can't count them as a full-marathon.
After last year, when I ran a half in June and another in September, I vowed “never more.” Apparently, I lied.
I’ve been wanting to run the Go! St. Louis Half-Marathon for a few years now, but it seems I was always traveling with one of the girls for volleyball. Not this year, so I am signed up to run this event on April 11. As is M. As are both of the girls. We’ll make it a great big family event!
And two weeks later (April 24), there is the Kentucky Derby Half-Marathon, for which I am also now signed up. This is one I’ve known of for several years and have wanted to run like no other. I mean, it takes you into Churchill Downs – how cool is that?! M is going to accompany me on this one. It’s been a good many years since I’ve been to Louisville and I’m not sure he’s ever been, so we’ll probably make a long weekend out of it as well.
One small problem as of late is the frightful cold that St. Louis is encountering, just like many other parts of the US. I’ve never been a fan of the cold, but usually if it’s above freezing and not all too windy, I will venture outside for a run. But not in this current weather – a high of 19 with a NW wind. Brrr…. This means I am trying to keep my miles up via the treadmill, which is not my favorite thing by a long shot. I’ve been a road runner for years, after all. I did find a couple of treadmill workouts that I hope will entertain me a bit, or at the very least take my mind off running in one place for 30 to 40 minutes. And with any kind of luck, in a week or two the weather will improve, if only slightly. Otherwise, I’m going to have to challenge myself to extend my run beyond 40 minutes, and that will be a true challenge for me.
Finally, here is one resolution. I resolve to run two half-marathons. With any kind of luck, one will be faster than my previous PR (2:03:xx).
Less than a week until Christmas and I am not feeling too stressed at all. This because I took yesterday afternoon off, picked up the last of the gifts and gift wrapping supplies, and then wrapped all the presents. In other words, at least as far as gifts go, I am all set and with a week to go. That’s pretty good for me!Yesterday the weather was also decent – in the 50s – so after I did all the work with the gifts I put on shorts (yes, shorts in December in St. Louis!) and went for a run. And I did run the entire route, just 3 miles, but boy oh boy did my legs feel like I was dragging anvils. And even though I wore long sleeves, I was still more than a mile into it before I warmed up, largely because it was windier than I anticipated. Still, as always, it felt good to be out and moving.And finally, golly do I love Christmas lights. Not that I put any up myself, but it’s more like I am so happy other people put up Christmas lights for me to enjoy. And where I live, there are some nice light displays. Not so much over the top, but just really pretty, sometimes simple, well lit homes. I see them and they make me smile and remind me that it is a magical time of year.
Last night we drank a Charles Smith Merlot called Velvet Devil (I believe the year was 2007). My gosh, what a great wine. We first discovered it at a pizza place in my little town called Dewey’s. M always has me take the first sip (apparently he agrees that sommelier school should be on my list?) and I described the finish to him like this: it’s like a great sugar cookie only not sweet, but it just melts in your mouth like the best of the best sugar cookies do – the ones that really don’t require you to chew because they melt.
He took his sip and had to agree. Needless to say, we enjoyed the wine very much.
One other thing I should explain about Dewey’s is that they support local brewers. Several weeks ago when M and I were in Ste. Genevieve we visited a few of the wineries. One of them, Charleville, also has a microbrew. We walked in and were a bit puzzled because we initially thought one of their beer tap handles was from a different brand, but of course, quickly realized, it was their own brew. We started to talk with the owners and found that yes indeed, this was a beer that Dewey’s carried. Great big small world of Missouri!
At my little cottage! We put up the tree yesterday and she is a beauty! Tall and fat and thick and just lovely (pictures at a different time). And so well lit! This year I resolved to throw away all my old, sporadically working lights and invest in all new lights. Some of the old lights were close to ancient (but Midwest girl that I am, they were working so I had to stand by them). Since I've been in this house I've used 3 strands of colored lights - one never twinkled, one sometimes twinkled, and one twinkled. Yes, kind of drove me nuts. This year, the day after Thanksgiving, I bought 6 boxes of white, 100 bulb, strands of Christmas lights. And yes indeed, all 600 lights are on my tree. It is beautiful and cheery and makes me smile hugely. And, for the first time since I've been in this house, all of the ornaments are on the tree. This is partly because H is home for the weekend and she likes to decorate the tree. It was fun - we have many ornaments that have stories behind them.Of course, M needed a tree as well so we took care of that Friday evening at his place. He has a mere 400 lights on a tree that is larger than mine, but still, his is a beauty as well. It's his first live tree ever and I think - hope - he is sold on how awesome it is to have a live tree. He seems to be.Friday was family night at M's house - all 6 of us were together for M's birthday dinner. Yum! We made Tuscan chicken, which was pretty much amazing. Given the small quantity of leftovers, I think we did a good job. We followed that with a couple of games of Right-Left-Center. Family nights and game night are just about the best thing ever!
It's a cold Friday, but I'm super cheery because...H comes home tonight!Tomorrow is M's birthday!We get Christmas trees this weekendThe weather is slightly warmer (running outside this weekend!)I'm thinking about a movie to see on Christmas DayAnd...It's Friday!
Well, I have not been very diligent about posting lately. And I sort of promised a new name, but I honestly haven't been able to come up with one. So for today, I'll just share these things that make me happy:Family
College decisions :-)
Adorable dogs
Cleaning day
Fire in the fireplace
Cooking together
Christmas!!!
One thing I’m not such a fan of is the treadmill. Dread-mill. Ugh. But at least for this week I’ve been diligent. I find that if I entertain myself I can do better so I’ve come up with two workouts that I tolerate pretty well:
