Tag: work life

Peace Out 2020

I really shouldn’t have said so many bad things about 2019. 2020 was just cackling in the background.

However, instead of digging into the dumpster fire that it was, lets talk about something else.
So, yes, last year went according to no plan but there were some things that didn’t suck.

I ran 2 IRL races. One local 8 miler in January with no medals or bibs or shirts so I kind of feel like I have nothing to show for it. Oh wait- a blog post here!

I ran half marathon #40 on March 1 in Napa. Yeah, not what I had hoped for half #40 but maybe indicative of the shi**storm that was coming. If you missed the sh*tshow- here’s a post!

Then the world went, well you know and my motivation took a huge nosedive. My first canceled race was in mid- March and it went downhill from there.

But moving on.

Work went cuckoo in April and then I received news that I was transferring offices in May. 3 times the size of my current one, so I guess I’m doing something right? I feel like I hit the ground running and haven’t stopped since.

Most of my canceled races transitioned to virtual, very few deferred or postponed. I also signed up for a few virtual challenges. However it took months for any semblance of motivation to come back. I’m still not sure it’s back but I am getting there. Maybe. That’s another post.

So…. yearly mileage. Yeah. I saw a number I haven’t seen since the first year or 2 when I was running. I ran 327 miles in 2020. Yay??

No, it’s not great but it is better than it could have been. When I say I was lazy outside of work- I was lazy. I am only now beginning to realize my stress level and my coping are not where they should be.

For a year with no miles, I may have the biggest medal haul yet-

Not sure how I feel about that. And some are not in this picture as I don’t feel I earned them. Something for 2021 right??

Oh- I did escape to the Grand Canyon and Sedona in the fall. First time as an adult and now I can’t wait to get back there.

Also, I have either optimistically or naively signed up for real race in 2021. Fingers crossed!

16- Maintain

This weeks snack obsession- Cheetos. The crunchy ones.

I have mentioned I am a stress eater, right?

Actually last week was a little better. I think. A little calmer at work, a few less carbs. Anyone else eating an impressive amount of banana bread?? Runner was better and my sleep was…well, can’t win ’em all.

I can’ remember anything particular about Monday so let’s just move on to Tuesday. I headed out for a few miles after work. Still running my neighborhood but I park at another work office not far from my house. Anything to avoid my damn driveway. I kept the run short and sweet- 2 miles– it was almost 80 and everyone and their brother was out. I’ve been running variations of this route for almost 10 years; I think I saw more people on Tuesday than I had in those 10 years combined.

Wednesday was another warm day so I didn’t even try to run. Knew the weather was changing soon.

Yep, a 20 degree temp drop on Thursday meant empty roads. I headed out for an easy-ish 5k after work. Easy-ish- I am so out of shape. And even though I am skipping my driveway, I am still running more hills than in the last year or so. This run saw a few hundred elevation gain/loss. Beginning to realize running more places over the past few years actually made me lazier. Oops.

Friday was stress and I just wanted to go home and hide. So I did. I resorted to one of my comfort movies and watched Battleship for the umpteenth time.

Saturday, I ventured out for a few essentials. Then I headed out for a few miles in the early afternoon. 5 miles. Longest run since Napa Valley. Ouch. The middle miles were fairly steady but I was dragging by mile 5. The only upside is that I didn’t allow myself to stop- no breaks. It’s been a while since I did that. Ok, I did stop once for a moment but that was because I had to make a route choice when I was essentially chasing another runner. That kind of doesn’t work right now.

Sunday, I woke with a knot in the hamstring area of my left leg. Odd, never felt anything there before. I was debating if running would help or hurt when my choice was made for me. I ended up being called into work and was there until dinner. I did finally prove that I could make it to my desk phone from the other side of the building before it went to voicemail. The difference between heels and running shoes- ha!

10ish miles and 3 runs for the week. Still small but a marked improvement over previous weeks.

How was your week?

13- Keeping On

And we gotta keep moving on, or trying to.

Last week was a full week of work and every time I think I have things handled, the rules changed again. Half of the building is closed and hours are shortened. I am rolling with it the best I can and trying to put the best foot forward for my coworkers. Speaking of foot- I found out we can wear sneakers! It’s the little things. Except I am still wearing my skirts and dresses so not sure how that would look. Ha! Also have to find the funny when I can or I may lose my mind.

The weather was cold and crappy last week so staying inside wasn’t that tough. We had hail and heavy rain which caused chaos on the roads, like always but at least there were fewer cars out, right?

I was pretty lazy Monday and Tuesday but forced myself on the bike on Wednesday after work. I had actually been super soar in my shins after Sunday’s ride on the bike. I jokingly posted on Twitter that I felt like I’d given myself shin splints. Apparently that is actually a thing, who knew?

What I didn’t mention on Twitter was that I had been riding the bike barefoot. Yeah…. So for this 30 minutes, I was in new running shoes and compression socks. I also adjusted the seat and pedals. So much better.

Then back to being lazy on Thursday and Friday. Can I blame the rain?

On Saturday I ventured out for supplies. You know I always wondered if I would save money by eating out less and eating at home more. Nope. Put that test to bed.

Then I ventured out for my first run in weeks. I felt torn about it but it was also kind of great. I did one loop of my block for 2.2ish miles. Yeah, it’s a big loop. And I gained over 200 ft. Yeah, there’s a reason I drive across town often to run. I kind of felt like me again.

I think Sunday’s are going to be nap days because what else is there? Haha.

So 2 workouts out of 7 days. Yeah, I should probably work on that.

How was your week?

Week 18-Embrace the Change

First full week with Endure Strong Coaching and first full week at the new job. I got this!

Maybe.

I think I can, I think I can. Maybe, this week took a lot out of me. Well, and the previous week. I need to get better about how/ when I eat now. I also drank way less than normal and that is not good. I ate so much crap but at the same time not enough. I lost 3 pounds but can’t claim that it was out self control and healthy choices.

2019 Race Schedule (so far):
6/2 RnR San Diego (Thanks BibRave)
8-11 Oaktown Half (Thanks BibRave)

Planned vs Actual

Monday- 1.5 easy miles/ 1.53 miles
Short, easy miles. I can do this!!! Except I will say that figuring out a 1.5 mile route is harder than it sounds.

Tuesday-2.5 miles hills/ Nada
I was having lingering wardrobe malfunction issues from Sunday’s race and any movement hurt. I had mostly ignored it the day before but I just couldn’t.

Wednesday- 1.5 easy miles/ 2.64 miles hills
I chose to do the missed workout instead of the easy run. I still wasn’t comfortable exactly but the hills felt decent. Until I checked my elevation gain at the end and realized it kind of sucked. But I ran that hill multiple times!

Thursday- 3 miles with strides/ 3.1 miles with strides
Strides are fun! The rest was easy miles and they felt ok. The mileage doesn’t worry me with this plan- the back to back running does which is why I chose a beginner plan, ha!

Friday- 1.5 miles easy/ 1.72 miles easy
Wait, what? Running on a Friday? After work? I don’t think I can…I did! And again planning a 1.5 mile route was the hardest part. Oh and this “easy” run had more elevation gain than my hill workout a few days back. Ha!

Saturday- 5 mile long run/ 5 mile slog
The long run wasn’t long so when I woke up to a spinning room courtesy of my head and not an earthquake this time. I went back to sleep and figured I could just run later. Which I did but it was freakin’ miserable. I was hot, overheated, dehydrated and just couldn’t. I should have turned around 2 miles in and taken the short cut but I pushed on. I wouldn’t call it running, it was mostly walking and then stopping to try to prevent more damage to an already popped blister. Plus, the shoes I wore on Wed- Friday had pissed off my left ankle.

Sunday- Rest day/ REST day
I did nothing. I tried to nap but couldn’t, boo.

14 ish miles for the week. And I only missed 1 workout! Who am I????

How was your week??