PR, why not?

Half marathon #2 is in the books, with no hip pain and a PR to boot!

Pittsburgh Marathon here I come! 

Straight from the jar day

The plan for this week:
- 20 mile run this past Saturday
- Take 3 rest days because I wouldn't have time for the gym
- Run 3 days

How this week really went
- Ran 20 miles Saturday
- 3 exhausting days off
- Run 4 miles one time
- Wake up with awful, horrible right superior IT Band pain :(
...who knows from here

I do think it's just a tight and irritated IT band because the pain temporarily subsides with some good stretching.  I am on the move all day at work though, and I can't just stop and stretch whenever I want to... as much as I'd like to.  I have no reason to push things now though, despite having just signed up for a half-marathon that is a little more than a week away.  The countdown to the Pittsburgh Marathon is getting shorter, and that's the main focus.

The worst part of this little training hiccup?  I need to run so badly this week.  It's been one of those weeks where the weekend just can't come fast enough. I'm annoyed and frustrated, and I want nothing more than to run it out and sweat it out.

Instead I ate peanut butter straight from the jar with Teddy Grahams and planted myself on the couch with some reruns of "Say Yes to the Dress" after work.  Eh, sometimes you make healthy choices and sometimes you don't.  Tomorrow is a new fresh day... and the start of a much needed weekend!

Weekend of Awesome

Despite dreary weather, this weekend was full of all kinds of awesome

1. I logged my first 20 mile run of the year in cold and wet weather Saturday.  I finished an "easy" paced 20 miles in under 4 hours, which is making me feel pretty confident about my May full.  I could walk the last 6.2 and still beat last year's marathon time!  As an added boost, my legs aren't feeling too shabby today!

Post-run bagel and chai latte were heavenly.

2. I finally got around to watching the Bachelor finale; it's my guilty pleasure.  I was admittedly disappointed with his final choice though.  Now on to Bachelorette Des!

3. I made Reese's Cheesecakes.  Unfortunately, mine didn't set... at all... and you had to eat them with a spoon.  Still delicious.  Pinterest led me to this recipe for happiness at HERE

Picture from ohbiteit.com with link to the recipe above.  This was a winner even if mine didn't turn out!

4. My family had some holiday confusion, and we spent St Patrick's Day having our annual Easter egg hunt.  The day included endless amounts of pizza and desserts... and over 400 filled eggs.  That's just how my family rolls.

5. I finally chose a half-marathon to run as "practice" before the Pittsburgh full.  13 days to my second half!

What kind of awesome was your weekend filled with?

In like a Lion

Mother Nature must have known a 17-miler was in my plans for the weekend because the weather was beyond gorgeous.  After waking up to this on Wednesday...

If we are going to get 7 inches of snow in March, at least I got a 2 hour delay!

...we had a sun-filled 60-something degree Sunday afternoon.  After so much time spent in tights, gloves, and balaclavas lately, this run felt so free.  Just a running skirt, a tank, and a hat to keep the sun out.  Oh, and salt creases in my elbows- now that's a sign of a good run!

Clearly I also got sunburn and a few million extra freckles.  Who would have thought I'd need full on sunscreen in March... in Pittsburgh!  Lesson learned.

I also thought post-long run couldn't be better timing for my annual Shamrock Shake.  We eat at McDonald's never ever, I stop there for coffee occasionally, and we go there exactly once a year for a Shamrock Shake.  Really I could drink them everyday from February to March... which is why I keep it to just one!  It was heavenly.

mcdonalds.com