16 Miles: Both Sluggish and Surprisingly Not Sluggish

Oh my god, y'all. I've never seen so many slugs in my LIFE. Big, ugly, fat brown slugs, just mozying across the pathway, asking to get run over. I saw quite a few (re: at least 8) that had been split open and their guts were spewed out everywhere. GROSS. I screamed an actual scream when I saw the first one, and by the 20th (LITERALLY) I couldn't really find the energy to care, I was so numb to the shock of seeing them.

Ughhhh.

I'm pretty sure I hate slugs because my mom hates slugs. Mom, you wouldn't even be able to handle the size of these slugs. They were at least as long as my middle finger, if not longer. I think most of the shock was that they looked like sticks from far away (THEY WERE THAT BIG), and then once I got closer and saw it's little antennae (or its guts spewed everywhere), I nimbly (re: awkwardly) jumped over them and made sure not to squish them further. Ughhhh.

I know why they were out there. It had just rained in Seattle (I know, big surprise) and it was the early morning, so I guess they were all out to party. (What do slugs even eat? How do they survive?) There's supposed to be a "Paws Walk" on the trail this morning - I hope they all get trampled and/or eaten by dogs. No, wait. That would be mean to the dogs.

ANYWAYS. The first half of my run was much more positive, although there were several instances where I felt like I was running through cobwebs. It was bunny-filled and cute. Seriously, I saw like eight bunnies. Their little white cotton tails darted away as I approached. Aghhh so cute!! And they're SPEEDY little fuckers. I couldn't believe how fast they were darting away - I couldn't really keep track of them after they had scurried off. I wish I was that fast!

Super cute!!

I almost named this post "16 Miles: Bunnies and Slugs" but then after seeing all the damn slugs on the way back (How did I miss them before?? Was it too dark to see? Did I step on any of them?) I HAD to put the focus on the slugs.

Onto the run. Woof, 16 miles. It was pitch black when I started - I had rehearsal at 10am this morning so I had to get out there pretty early - so I brought my bike light and attached it to my water belt. It sufficed. I have to invest in an actual running light if I'm going to do that often.

Slowest mile: Mile 9. Fastest: Mile 16!

I had my banana-blueberry puree beforehand, as well as a KIND bar.

I ate Clif Shot Bloks at Miles 1, 5, 8, 10, 12, and 14. I do see a positive correlation between speed and when I took the Shot Blok, so maybe it was related?

I'm proud of my average time, but I was definitely hurting at the end of this run. Plus the idea of going to rehearsal afterwards... ugh, not cool. I survived at rehearsal, but only just.

I forgot to mention, during my 14 miler last weekend, I wore my UT hat because the first game of the season was being played that day.

As I ran, someone running the opposite way thrust their hand towards me, forming the UT sign as they passed! I LOVE meeting UT fans up here in the Pacific Northwest! It makes me nostalgic for college.

JW and I at graduation. Hook 'em!!

We went to Laredo's in Seattle to watch the game, where we won. Right now we're watching the game against BYU on ESPN and I must say we're doing a pretty shitty job. SIGH. Football season... gotta love it!

At Laredo's last weekend

I'm happy the run is over, but per usual, I'm worried about next weekend's 18 miles, along with Opening Night on Friday! Eep!

How was your long run this weekend? Ever encounter slugs?

10 Miles: Surprisingly Easy

I started this week fresh and anew.

Our engagement party on Friday night proved to be a little too much fun, and I was struggling all day on Saturday, feeling the lasting effects. I was supposed to run 10 miles, but the morning passed, the day went on, and I kept actively replacing the run in my mind throughout the day: after JW's concert, after dinner with friends, after we got home, that I would do it on the treadmill... I finally had to accept that running had officially left Saturday's agenda, and I would have to put it off for Sunday.

Even after my post yesterday, telling myself that it was okay if my plans changed, I still struggled with the feeling of being disappointed in myself for not just sucking it up and doing it. I was still struggling with allowing myself to recognize that I needed another rest day.

So, this morning, I set my alarm for 5:30, and reset it for an hour later. I work up at 6:30 feeling refreshed and ready. But I'm not gonna lie, I was nervous.

My fuel: a Think Thin Crunch bar, chocolate dipped mixed nuts. Yum! I also ate two Clif Shot Bloks: one at mile 3, and one at mile 6.

I got to the park a little before 7, and started my run slowly. I wasn't sure what my goal was - when I started, it was definitely just to finish. As I ran, I started to slowly speed up - my average speed, which I'm told every hour by my Nike Running app, was slowly decreasing. I decided to try and see if I could get the time to get smaller and smaller by every mile, but not to push it too much.

I ended up succeeding! Though it doesn't necessarily mean negative splits, I got pretty damn close. I can officially say that my body is used to conserving energy for the last couple of miles- hoorah!

During the run, I kept being surprised at how fast the miles were going by. I swear I would think that I'd have at least another .25 miles to go, but then my app would come on and tell me that I'd completed yet another mile. I love that feeling! I don't know what kind of mental state I was in, but I hope to duplicate it on the even longer runs. (Next week is 12 miles...ack!)

I felt good after the run - strong, and motivated. It was a beautiful morning, with the sun peeking out over the mountains behind me, and when I turned around, it hid behind the clouds to give me shade. The breeze was amazing, and I got to see a lot of people coming out for their Sunday morning walks. I really do like the mornings and need to remember that!

The rest of today was spent being lazy and attempting to eat not crap foods... even though I still ended up eating two halves of a Cupcake Royale cupcake. And Chipotle. OH WELL. C'est la vie! I ended today with rehearsal that got cut short, a FaceTime call with the future in-laws, and a short marathon of Friends episodes.

I'd say it's been a good day. :)

JW's starting Insanity today: ever tried it?

Changing Plans isn't Failure (plus 5 miles)

This whole week, I've felt like I've failed my workouts. But I have to remember, just because my run or weight training workout didn't happen when I wanted it to, or how long I wanted it to, or even where I wanted it to, I still succeeded because I did it!

It's so easy to get bogged down because plans change, but that's something I have to get used to - I have to be flexible, be open to switching things around, and realize that everything doesn't always happen exactly the way I plan it.

(I need to keep this in mind while I plan my wedding!)

Today, after failing changing my mind about running at 6am, and a whole bunch of things being cancelled (a Skype date with a friend and a voice lesson), I got my butt outside six hours later to run 5 miles.

I had no idea it was that hot!

 I ate two Clif Shot Bloks - one before the run, and one right in the middle. I've yet to determine if they actually make me faster.

No comment on that 4th mile!

This run had a lot of stopping and starting at the beginning while I was getting out of downtown, and then I conquered a lot of neighborhood hills. I got to look at some pretty neat houses, which was cool! I wonder how much they are...

I'm really happy to get this run out of the way so we can enjoy our Engagement Party tonight! :D Trying not to think about tackling 10 miles tomorrow...

How are your runs going, now that we're in August? Easier than July? 

A Dragon Run, some Deer, and a Puppy

Another 7 miler down the drain in the bag! (It's been a long day.)

I woke up EEARRRLLYY this morning (re: 6:00... so not early at all, I know, I know-) and quickly made myself a pre-run meal of a whole wheat English muffin and almond butter. I don't know if it was because it was 6:30 in the morning, or because I hadn't eaten since 7pm the previous night , but that muffin was the BEST muffin I had ever tasted in my whole life. That snack gave me LIFE, y'all.

I really wish this was my photo. But it basically looked exactly like this. Source.

Unfortunately, it wasn't the best pre-run meal that I could have had. I had a few cramps at the very beginning of the run that I was a little worried about, but they went away right around the halfway mark. I ate a Clif's Shot Blok around mile 3, and it seemed to go down okay.

I think it kinda looks like a dragon. See the horn, and the two nostrils?

So elusive!! Stupid 3rd mile.

I may have gone so fast on the last mile because I saw a family of deer crossing the trail right in front of me. A FAMILY. OF DEER. This adds to my animal count on this run: two bunnies, and a flock of geese that I was sure was going to kill me if I didn't run super fast through them. Bunnies and geese are a given, but DEER?? I wish I had gotten a picture, but a) it was on the last mile and I wanted to finish strong, and b) I wasn't exactly sure Papa Deer wasn't going to assault me with those antlers if I lingered too long.

Trying to find pictures of the breed of deer I saw is turning out to be pretty icky - hunting pictures and such. Ugh. Moving on...

Much better.

I wore my new sports bra - review forthcoming, as soon as I can get a decent picture of it without me sweating all over it - and my yoga pants, with a cotton shirt. For some reason cotton really doesn't bother me on long runs as it does for some people. I liked it just as much as the new Nike tee I keep taking pictures of. Who'd a thunk.

What I looked like right before my shower. I know, you were dying to see.

After I got home, I quickly took a shower and put on my compression socks (I took a Snapchat picture of them.. and forgot to save it. **headdesk**) and immediately took an hour nap. IT WAS GLORIOUS. I think that's the best part of morning runs - the fact that, because of the flexibility of my job, I can go home and GO BACK TO SLEEP.

Hm. Did you know if you Bing (I'm so trendy, I know) images of the word "sleep" you get some really freaky shock pictures? Yikes. Never doing that again.

Here's a picture of a sleeping puppy.

Now we all feel better, right? :)

This day is begging to be over with - so I will end it here. Happy running!