Monday, September 24, 2012

I Run, You Run

Week of September 16, 2012:

Wednesday: Bike ride for groceries

Thursday: A quickie strength session at night (push-ups, crunches, squats, etc.)

Friday: Evening run (30 minutes)

Saturday: Bike ride to campus and the hippie food store

Total minutes run this week: 85.

Week of September 23, 2012:

Sunday: Long run (54 minutes)  54 minutes!  Hurray!

I love that Mondays have become Training Update Day among my running-blogger friends.  Raquelita’s and Chrissy’s updates today were very inspiring—they had great training weeks last week, and I’m excited for their upcoming races.  Reading their posts was like an infusion of positive running vibes right into my brain.

My training week last week wasn’t too bad.  I seem to have shifted back into a pattern of evening runs, and that was deliberate: I really needed my sleep.  But I’m happy that I had three solid runs, three bike rides for various errands, and a decent week at work.  I’m always playing the balancing game when it comes to my energy levels: am I getting enough done?  Am I getting some miles under my feet?  Am I getting enough sleep?  Am I making some time for fun?

This week I’m going to try to shift back into morning runs for two reasons.  One is that this week is supposed to be hotter than last week, and believe me—I felt the heat on Sunday when I headed out at 11 AM for a morning run.  It was a tough one.  The other reason is that I may be going out two nights in a row, so I’m not sure that running will be an option on those evenings.

Finally, can I just say that red lentil dahl may be the perfect meal on long run days?  I made Chrissy’s starving artist recipe again, and man, it is fantastic.  This time I used a hunk of fresh ginger for even more flavor.  I’m starting to think that the smell of fresh garlic and ginger cooking in hot oil will cure whatever ails you.  Yum.

Sunday Lunch

Have a great week, friends!  Keep up the good work.

4 comments:

  1. Oh, the balancing act is so challenging. You're doing a great job! My knee is feeling a little crunchy so I'm giving it a rest this evening instead of running. I'm tempted to try getting up an hour earlier (4:55) to run on Wednesday morning since Bailey has a vet apt. in the afternoon, and this week is proving to be extra busy due to an unexpected confluence of upcoming deadlines on top of which I will be getting 50 papers to read and grade tomorrow.

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    1. Ooh, I shuddered at the description of your crunchy knee! I'm glad you are letting it rest.

      As for getting up early, I say if you're feeling good this week, go for it. I often find I sleep better if I'm getting up early to run, so the sleep thing balances itself out. When I climb into bed, usually I think to myself, Oh, it feels so good to not be moving! That's the best.

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  2. I'm also liking the weekly training recaps! It's nice to be inspired by my active blogging buddies. :) And I'm so glad you still like and make that Dahl recipe! It's my favorite - I use fresh ginger whenever I can.

    Here's to hoping fall comes to Texas soon!

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    1. Oh, yes, your dahl is part of my regular rotation now. Easy, delicious, and filling--AND it makes for great lunches.

      I might switch my formula here to write Monday training posts and then an additional post later in the week. I have some post ideas up my sleeve, but I haven't found the time to sit down and work on them. Ah, so much to do all the time!

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