Resolutions!

{image credit: weheartit}

2010 was magical.  Truly.  And because I love so much how Nina summed up her year, I'm going to do the same.

In 2010, I...

• went vegan for 21 days (and then some)
• visited DC, New York, Cali
• made the decision to quit my job, sell my stuff, and move to NYC (here's why)
• said goodbye to my sweet, sweet pup Lola
• blogged about my first 30 days in my new city
• turned 27
• road-tripped to Chatham, MA - my first real "East Coast" beach vacay
• scored my first non-attorney job (still lovin' it!)
• rediscovered my love for an active social life
• fell back in love with running and signed up to run the Austin Half
• accepted and celebrated my happiness

It's been... a good year.  A very good year indeed.  Moving to NYC has been, without a doubt, one of the best decisions of my life.  I am so thankful to God, my family, and my friends (that means YOU!) for the outpouring of love and support throughout my transition.  I am STOKED for what 2011 has to offer!!  And with that, I leave you with my New Year's Resolutions... 

My word for 2011: FAITH 

It didn't take me long to decide on my word for 2011 - faith.  The latter part of 2010 required a great deal of faith on my part, and I definitely struggled with it.  It's something I've always struggled with actually.  I'm not talking about faith strictly in the religious sense (although that is definitely part of it).  I'm talking about faith in myself and my decisions, too.  I'm talking about trust.  Trusting moi and in the bigger plan.  So let's talk about faith!

• Create monthly goals and blog about them - I used to be really good about this, but completely fell off the wagon.  I find that creating, thinking and discussing monthly goals increase the likelihood of my actually achieving them.  (Plus it makes my NYR list a heck of a lot shorter.)  Stay tuned for January's - it's a good one!

• Create a budget (done!) and stick to it - I've already created my monthly budget in a fun, pink Excel spreadsheet.  Now I need to stick to it which means recording every single transaction and keeping myself accountable (even when I go overboard).

• Read the Bible - I bought an awesome woman's devotional Bible a couple months ago and spent some quality time with it.  It helped me tremendously when I was going through a very dark period full of fear, uncertainty and loads of tears (namely when I was afraid I would never find a job and made the wrong decision to leave my cushy life in Austin).  Since I've started working, however, it has been sorely neglected.  I want to spend time with it, reading it like I would a good book (isn't that what it is, after all?).  I used to know the Bible SO well (aka when I was in grade school and went to Sunday school on a regular basis), and it's appalling how much I've forgotten.  My faith is important to me, despite the fact that I don't discuss it much on here, and just as I said last year, I want more spirituality in my life and to grow my relationship with God, and I think this is a great first step.

I'm ringing in the new year with all my NYC besties at my friend Will's apartment.  I'm thrilled that he's having a party b/c he lives about 7 minutes away from me (walking!), which means I don't have to deal with finding a cab on arguably the first night of the year to find a cab.  I haven't decided what I'm wearing, but I anticipate it will be short, sassy and sparkly!  (I also plan on having huge TX hair and fuchsia lips - tee hee)

What are your NYE plans?  STAY SAFE AND BE MERRY!  See you in 2011.  :D

Thoughts on Training

I feel a bit silly writing this post because my running pales in comparison to some I've seen on other blogs (like crazy but adorable Janae who ran TWENTY-EIGHT MILES the other day... just because).  That being said, this is all new to me, and I've gotten such wonderful feedback from all of you that I want to keep blogging about my training, and that's what this post is all about!  It's only fitting that I write this right before the new year because the first New Year's Resolution that popped into my head was to stick to my training.  Because lemme tell ya, I haven't been...

THE PLAN. The calendar below details my training plan for January.  December and the last bit of November looked the same, just with lower mileage.  But you see all those days marked "Yoga/Pilates" and "cross training" and "strength training"?  Yeah.  There are big F's over those days because F stands for FAIL, my friends.  But that will not be the case for 2011!!  I am going to do it ALL like a good little Half-Marathon runner, and you guys are going to help me stay accountable!

Sticking to the above will be a challenge, to say the least.  It has me essentially working out 6 out of 7 days a week, and lemme tell ya the last time I've done that... NEVER.  That is a whole lotta working out, and I know that there are tons of you who do this on a regular basis, and I applaud you for that, but I am so not one of you.  Well, I used to be not one of you, but that's all going to change next week!!  I am DETERMINED, y'all!  I want to get FIT and HEALTHY and TRAIN LIKE A ROCKSTAR!!!  Okay, maybe a little too much caffeine today. 

THE SACRIFICE. There are going to be some things I have to give up if I'm going to be said rockstar.  The hardest thing for me will definitely be social activities, particularly those that revolve around drinking and very late nights.  Both don't bode well for early long runs on the weekends, and even dinner/drinks/movie plans during the week mess up my training schedule.  Because I don't want to be a total, miserable recluse, I've decided that the best plan for me is to have a plan.  If I have a dinner date, then that means I have to do my workout in the morning (which I know I CAN do), and if I want to go out on the weekends, then I have to limit it to one night (aka not the night before my long run) OR I can go out and not drink (which, let's be honest, is not much fun).  Oh Lord, I can hear my friends sighing and groaning now!

THE EATS (aka the other sacrifice). I'm gonna be honest... I haven't been eatin' so well.  Now, I could blame the Holidays or the fact that running burns a lot of calories ("I have to refuel!!"), but the reality is that I just love food.  Lots of it.  I'm an equal opportunity eater, too.  I love brussel sprouts as much as I love french fries (well... almost as much), but I do love french fries.  I mentioned awhile back that I joined Weight Watchers, and yes, I am still a member.  Unfortunately, work has caused me to miss more than several meetings over the past couple of months, and not going means not thinking about it which means not tracking which means not losing.  My goal for the holidays was to just not gain anything, which I think I've successfully done.  But now, I have a new goal: to lose 10 lbs by February 20 (aka this day).  Pretty ambitious, but I think fully possible as long as I stick to the Program.  Thank G I have an awesome support group!  (TUESDAY HAPPY HOUR GALS, I'M TALKIN' ABOUT YOU!!!)  So french fries are OK, just not everyday and okay, maybe not always dipped in full-fat ranch (mmmm ranch).  ;)  Oh and I should probably lay off of these as well (thank G they are seasonal)...

(Candy Cane Joe Joe's from Trader Joe's aka a better peppermint oreo aka CRACK)

THE LIFE. Confession: I love being a runner.  I love that I ran 4.5 miles tonight like it was nothing, when a few months ago I could barely run a mile without stopping to walk.  I love the gadgets (like my big ole ugly Garmin) and the excuse to buy Lululemon clothes (don't read this, Mom!!).  Heck, I even love wearing my dorky compression socks complete with ice pack pockets!

Along with that love, however, comes fear.  I'm afraid that I won't be able to do it.  I'm afraid I'll fail.... again.  Last weekend, my 6-mile long run in California was beyond painful, and I couldn't help but wonder how the hell I was going to run 13.1 miles if I could barely run 6.  But that kind of thinking gets you nowhere so I pushed it out of my mind as best I could.  I. Can. Do. This.

THE FUTURE. From this point on, I'm going to be smart.  I'm going to take care of my body - train it properly, fuel it properly and thank it for doing what it's doing.  I know why my last 6-miler was so painful - it's because I'm trying to do too much too fast.  Every book, magazine article and runner will tell you not to increase distance and speed simultaneously.  But guess what I'm doing?  Uh huh...  Honestly, I blame all those darn healthy living/running bloggers that run sub-8 min miles all the time!  I need to use these blogs as motivation, not as a measuring stick.  I need to SLOW DOWN and just focus on finishing.  Remind me of that, will you??

Ok, here I go, time to be a rockstar!!!

Snowmageddon & What's to Come!

BONJOUR, MES AMIES!!  

That's me and my new little man Koster.  He stayed at Ma Soeur's house w/ Lola and Sofie (Ma Soeur's dog) while his parents were away for the holidays.  He and I quickly bonded, and since Lola wouldn't give me the time of day, I made sure Koster spent a lot of time in my lap.  :D  Isn't he precious??

After 12+ hours of traveling, I am *finally* back in the City, and oh my, it's a sight to see!  Literally walls of snow on the sidewalks and lots of gross black slushiness.  I stepped into a massive snow puddle today and almost fell!  Thank goodness I was wearing rainboots.  They are a necessity in this city FO SHO.  Check out the pic of my street below!

Anyway, I'm back to work tomorrow, but it's a tres short week since I have NYE off - hurray!  My Roomie Annika and I were supposed to be the only ones home this week (the other 2 gals aren't returning until after the new year) so we had wild plans of Criminal Minds-watching and ultimate laziness.  Sadly her flight was cancelled, and she won't be back in the city until Friday night - BOO.  Once upon a time I would have relished the idea of having the entire apartment to myself for 4 days, but instead, I'm feelin' a little lonely!  Funny how things can change so quickly, eh?

I should probably go to bed since redeye = crappy 5 hours of sleep, but I've got some new stickers to play with so the chances are lookin' slim.  Wanted to let you know that I am planning to post my New Year's Resolutions this week, some of which have to do with this blog (which, I know, has been terribly neglected).  I've got some big decisions to make, but when I do, I'll be sure to share them!  

Have a WONDERFUL week, my loves!!

4 Miles: California-Style

Just got back from doing 4 miles in Ma Soeur's neighborhood.  It's beautiful, sunny and a downright balmy 50 something degrees outside.  I got so hot during my first 2 miles that I had to strip down to shorts and a tank for my last 2.  Admittedly it wasn't my best run, and I am D-Y-I-N-G to plug in my Garmin to check out my stats, but alas, I didn't bring my laptop or cord w/ me.  Ma Soeur's neighborhood is small, and so I had to get a bit creative to figure out to accomplish my 4 miles without looping the same loop about 15 times.  I used mapmyrun.com and found a good, albeit confusing 2-mile loop, which would allow me to stop for water.  Unfortunately, despite my studying the map for a good 10 minutes, I still got confused and spent the first 2 miles frantically going back and forth, trying to find my way.  Needless to say, by the time I got back to the house for a water break, I was annoyed, hot and tired.  For the last 2 miles, I decided to stick to a safe route.  I was pretty tired, and it didn't go quite as seamlessly as a 4-miler should at this point, but whatever, I finished.  I'm now inhaling hot cocoa and a breakfast pita and then will get ready to meet the gorgeous CRYSTAL for a coffee date in Santana Row.  Then, I will feast on a burger and french fries.  :D

HAVE A MERRY CHRISTMAS EVE!!

Morning & Merry Christmas

{image from: we heart it}

Hey, guess what? I haven't caught up on life yet.  And because yet another emergency arose at work this week, and because I'm flying out Wednesday night for California, I knew I'd have a difficult time fitting in my 4-mile run.  So I did something crazy.  I told Roomie Trois that I'd maybe possibly be willing to go to the gym with her in the morning... as in before work.

Let's back up a second - I am not (wow am I obsessed with italics or what??) a morning workout person.  All those people who say they get more energy if they work out in the morning?  Yeah, I call them all liars b/c that's never been the case for me.  So I knew I must've been smokin' something to even suggest the possibility of waking up before 6 am to run.  But once you tell Roomie Trois something like that, she won't forget it, and sure enough, when my alarm went off at 5:45 AM this morning, I got out of bed (albeit begrudgingly), and we headed out into the very dark, very cold early morning.  Destination: New York Health & Racquet Club.

Well... I might be a little more of a morning workout person now.  Don't get me wrong - I still hate it - but there are many perks to running in the morning, including but not limited to:

• Less people (Caveat: There are less people than there are at 6 PM.  However, this is NYC, home of the Type-A crazies.  So it was still pretty busy.)
• Higher likelihood of my fave treadmill being available (There are 2 treadmills, yes only 2, on which I will run.  Typically they are both taken, and I have to wait.)
• No side stitches (I consistently get side stitches on my right side when I run.  It's friggin' annoying as hell, and I've tried just about everything to get rid of them.  But this morning when I ran, I had ZERO pain which was AWESOME!!  I think the fact that I had nothing in my stomach helped.)
• Better bod?  (See this NYT article)
• Smug feeling of satisfaction that lasts allll day and makes your coworkers want to shoot you after you've exclaimed for the tenth time that you went to the gym at 6 AM!!

 So... yeah, not sure why I had to make a bulleted list of all that OR even why I'm devoting an entire blog post to something that may never happen again (don't tell Roomie Trois), but there ya go.

OK, I've got one night to pack for my 5 night/6 day Christmas in California Trip (to see LOOOOOLAAAAA!!), and since I'm the world's worst packer, I should probably begin.  I'm super duper excited for my first Christmas in Cali, and my itinerary already includes a 90-minute deep tissue massage (SWOON), lots of running, yoga, pumpkin pie-eating and catching up with one of my fave blog friends.  I know I've been MIA lately, but I hope y'all know how much I love you!

MERRY CHRISTMAS, MES CHERIES!!

RUN: 6 Miles (and Potential Catastrophe)

I was a bad runner this week. In fact, the ONLY training I did this past week was to run 4 miles on the dreadmill on Monday. Aside from that, you wanna know what I did? I ate heavy, decadent food, TONS of Christmas sweets, and drank a lot of wine (and LOADS of champagne at Firm Holiday Party).  It's amazing that I even decided to do my long run this weekend, but I knew that if I didn't, I probably would never run again (yeah - I have that weird kind of mentality).  So after checking our the forecast and determining that Saturday would be a better day to tackle 6 miles than Sunday, I had a plan.  Wake up, eat bagel, allow bagel to digest, and head to Central Park.  Instead, I woke up late, ate a bagel and then some, and laid in Roomie's bed for a long time before finally deciding that I needed to GO. 

I fully anticipated a very painful run, and on a scale from 1 to 10, it was around a 7.  Because I had to do 6 miles, that meant I had to essentially run the perimeter of the Park, which also meant I had to tackle the so-called "Harlem Hills" (aka the bit of the Park above 102nd St.).  They were straight up miserable.  They are so twisty and turny and SO annoying uphill for so long that you honestly think the hill will never end.  Suffice to say, I stopped to walk.  A LOT.  And then around mile 4, I realized that my iPHONE WAS MISSING.  Stupidly, I moved my iPhone from its secure zippered pocket to my very unsecure front pocket, and sure enough, it fell out, and I didn't notice b/c Girl Talk was blasting in my ears, and I was cursing the hills.  Once I realized it was gone, I immediately turned back around and ran, stopping every single runner/cyclist/rollerblader/walker whether they had seen a phone.  "Nope."  I was starting to get all kinds of panicky and downright tearful.  I have a bad history of losing phones and to replace my new iPhone would be downright painful (especially sans a lawyer's salary).  I had just about given up hope on finding my phone (and the run AND life altogether) when I stopped a tiny Asian woman.  "Excuse me, have you seen a phone?"  "Oh yes - right there!"  She pointed to the sidewalk and there was my phone.  THANK SWEET JESUS!!!  My case is a little (okay, a lot) banged up, but my phone was A-OK!  I was SOOOOOOOO RELIEVED and literally thanked God about a million times. 

I found my phone around mile 4.5 and then proceeded to turn back around and continue my run (note: this meant tackling a hill I had already tackled - grr).  Around mile 5, I stopped and bought a Gatorade and then proceeded to stop frequently to sip said Gatorade so I wouldn't have to hold it (thankfully, I had gloves on this time).  Eventually I hit 6 miles and thanked God once again for helping me find my phone and finish my run.  It was at this point that I realized just how painful it was to walk.  Slowly but surely I found my way back to the subway and made it home.  Walking up my 2.5 flights of stairs?  Tres painful.  I iced, donned my super hot compression socks, showered, made a huge bowl of food, and then proceeded to lay in Roomie's bed (again) for the next several hours.  (My room was too messy.)  All in all, not a bad run considering.  Voila my stats:

Total Distance:  6 miles
Total Time:  59:03 

• Mile 1:  9:24  (Had no idea I was going so fast - normally, my first mile is super slow.)

• Mile 2:  9:47

• Mile 3:  9:32

• Mile 4:  10:29  (When I realized I lost my phone...)

• Mile 5:  10:24  (Stopped for Gatorade and lots of Gatorade-drinking)

• Mile 6:  9:25  (At this point, I just wanted to be DONE so I made it a point to hustle!)

I could've sworn my time would've been more than 60 minutes, but somehow I managed to be a speedy demon (well... for me, anyway) for 4 out of 6 miles and managed to finish under a 10 min/mile pace - AWESOME!  Honestly, I could care less about my speed - I'm more interested in finishing.  But the fact that my runs have become speedier has definitely been fun.

No pre-run picture b/c I looked downright uggo.  Also, the week of excessive eating and drinking left me bloated and quite... round.  I'm going to get all kinds of serious about my training in January.  That means weekly runs, long runs, cross-training, strength training, AND yoga and pilates.  Will write more about that later!  Hope you had a FABULOUS weekend, my darlings!  I'm off to a fun Art Show and to see Black Swan!

Catching Up

Hello, my name is Carolyn, and I am behind on life.  Nonetheless, I am here to give you a quick recap of my petite life lately, namely my fantabulous weekend with my bestie from Austin. 

Saturday morning was the Jingle Jog 4-Miler in Prospect Park, and I know beaucoup of my twitter friends ran it, too!  Unfortunately I didn't get to see most of them as it was quite crowded.  Voila moi and Jenny before the race (I look exhausted b/c I got 3 hours of sleep the night before...):

I also look stupid b/c I'm wearing a fleece headwrap/earwarmer... not cute.  But a necessity when it's cold outside!  I was super nervous about the race for several reasons:

1. This was my first race in 5 years.
2. I heard that Prospect Park was HILL-y.  (It is, but it's nothing compared to the Harlem hills in Central Park!)
3. Jenny has run 2 Half's and is a fast (and ridiculously in shape) runner.
4. I never run that early in the morning.
5. I had nothing in my stomach except coffee and water b/c one of my roomies accidentally threw away my pre-race banana. :(

But the race went off without a hitch!  It was a gorgeous, sunny morning, and Christmas cheer was definitely in the air.  The first mile was extremely slow, as it was extremely crowded, but Jenny and I took off after that.  Here's a breakdown mile by mile:

Mile 1: 11:09 (so crowded - spent most of the time weaving)
Mile 2: 9:51 (picked up the pace! still tres crowded)
Mile 3: 9:06 (no idea what happened here but we were speed demons! at one point i looked down at my Garmin, and I was running at an 8 something min/mile pace - UNHEARD OF!!)
Mile 4: 9:36 (went way too fast in the last mile and started feeling it in the last 3/4 mile.  also, there was a giant hill at the very end which was nothing short of cruel.  still, i ran much faster than usual!)

The feeling of pride, satisfaction and relief that you get once you cross the finish line is like none other (as long as you ignore the thrown up hard-boiled egg at the finish line).  And this was just a 4-miler!  I can't WAIT for the Austin Marathon.  :D  Afterwards we sipped on hot cocoa and then made our way to Stone Park Cafe, a darling and absurdly delicious brunch spot in Park Slope.  Buttermilk pancakes, quiche, cheese grits, and lots of coffee were subsequently consumed.  YUM.

After brunch we headed home, showered, and spent the next several hours in bed, watching Eclipse, and falling in and out of sleep.  It was awesome.  The rest of the weekend was a blur of decadent meal after meal, a little shopping, a little ballet, and a little of me falling down the stairs... yeah.  Thankfully I'm okay and didn't twist anything, but I have got to be careful.  Last time I trained for a Half, I fell down some stairs and twisted my ankle.  No bueno.

Anyway, I've gotta run (literally - I have 4 miles to conquer on the dreadmill!), but just want to wish you guys HAPPY HOLIDAYS!  I can't believe that in just over a week, I'll be in California celebrating Christmas with my Lolabear!!

Truth

{photo from we heart it}

I am, if nothing else, honest, particularly when it comes to this blog.  As I began reflecting over 2010 and thinking about how/what I'd do to sum up the last year on Hang On Little Tomato, I started thinking about why I blog at all.  My blog, as I'm sure you've gathered, is extremely personal in nature.  I've never been afraid of being brutally honest about my life because guess what?  I'm not here to sugarcoat anything.

Last week I was catching up w/ an old friend on gchat, and she said something along the lines of "Your life sounds fabulous."  I laughed to myself, knowing that she was basing this statement on my tweets and occasional facebook updates.  Is my life fabulous?  Sure, sometimes, but I'm sure it sounds a lot more fabulous via Twitter/FB than it actually is.  Isn't that how it always goes?  Actually, one of the things I hate most about Facebook is that it's become a competition of "whose life sounds better?"  It's insanely annoying, and at times, depressing, especially when you feel like your life isn't going so well.  I know, I've been there.  Many a time.

So no, my life is not nearly as fabulous as it may sound, but it is pretty sweet these days.  For the past few weeks I've found it difficult to walk around and not smile.  How did I get here?  One year ago today, I had no idea that I'd be living in New York.  I had no idea that I would no longer be practicing law.  I had no idea that everything could change in such a short period of time.  And all for the better.  I am so so SO thankful.  I am so blessed.  I have been so ridiculously lucky.  I thank God about a million times a day.  I am grateful and want to share some of that gratitude with you. 

New York City... is my home now.  That continues to blow my mind every time I step foot outside of my apartment.  Despite all the annoying things about living here, this city has welcomed me with open arms.  I've adjusted alarmingly well (and much to my surprise), and I kind of can't imagine being anywhere else right now.  I love it.  I love it so much.

My social life... is completely different from where it was a year ago.  I think part of it is living in the city (it's almost impossible not to be super social here), but a lot of it has to do with the fact that for the first time in a couple of years, I want to be social.  Don't get me wrong - I still crave my alone time and solitude - I just don't need as much right now.  People warned me of how lonely NYC can feel, no matter how many friends you have.  But I haven't felt lonely at all.  I have a WONDERFUL support system here, and that, my friends, is priceless.


My roomies... rock my world.  I never, EVER thought I'd enjoy living with roommates as much as I have.  Granted, it hasn't always been easy (remember all the complaining I did early on??).  But these days, we've fallen into a wonderful and regular rhythm of living together and enjoying it.  Take this past weekend, for example.  Friday night Roomie Une and I were both exhausted and decided to have a chill night in.  We ordered pizza, shopped at a blissfully empty Trader Joe's, and then went to Borders at midnight to purchase Eclipse.  We then proceeded to make coffee, eat Candy Cane Joe Joe's (AMAZING!!), and stay up watching the movie.  It was one of the best Friday nights ever!  Saturday, Roomie Une, Roomie Trois and I got bundled up and headed to Friend of a Farmer for brunch.  We ordered beaucoup du cafe, pumpkin pancakes, and a ginormous breakfast burrito and chatted about everything.  We then hit up the Fifth Avenue shops for... well, a lot of shopping we probably didn't need to do.  ;)  Today, Roomie Trois got engaged, and I couldn't be happier for her (although I'll be tres sad when she moves out next year). 

My job... rocks my face off.  No, seriously, I never thought I could enjoy going to work as much as I do.  Even when we had our major emergency, and I had to work on the weekend and stay late on Friday nights, I still loved it.  And it has 99% to do with the fact that I adore the people I work with.  They are smart, hard-working, kind and FUN individuals, and I feel like I have a whole new family. 

My apartment... is a third floor walk-up in the heart of Chelsea, and it has a WASHING MACHIEN.  It's mere minutes from a great movie theater, Trader Joe's, my gym, and about a bizillion restaurants.  And my room, while small, has a decent sized closet and is pleasantly pink.  :)

My running... would not have taken off again had I not been here, surrounded by inspiring runners and a gorgeous park.

My life... is wonderful.  It's not always great.  My days have their ups and downs.  I still get pissed off, I still cry, I still wish that certain things could be different.  But overall?  I'm the happiest I've been in a very, very long time.  Merci, 2010.  You've been a good year.

5 Miles... Again

WONDERFUL long run in Central Park.  Definitely less "I want to die" than last week's 5-miler, which is funny considering I ran under a 10 min mile for most of it.  Also, it was mad chilly!!!  34 degrees yo.  I busted out the running tights and looked like a walking Lululemon ad...

Also, you can't tell from the pic, but my socks were purple and also Lululemon.  Yup... I'm ridic.

Was I warm?  Yes, while I was running, I felt great.  At times I even unzipped a little because my neck was getting too hot.  But afterwards my fingers were completely frozen (the Gatorade I held during the last mile decidedly did not help).  I am definitely getting my hands on some running gloves before my next run.  34 degrees is COLD, y'all.  Anyway, here are my stats!

Distance: 5.08 miles
Avg Pace: 9:55/mi

1. Mile 1 - 9:53/mi
2. Mile 2 - 10:17/ mil (HELLO, HILLS!!)
3. Mile 3 - 9:41/mi
4. Mile 4 - 9:48/mi
5. Mile 5 - 9:59/mi

Calories Burned: 631 (which I then consumed in the form of a salted caramel hot chocolate)
Ascent: 807 ft
Descent: 893 ft

Not sure why I ran so much faster than normal, but whatevs!  I feel GOOD.  Currently icing my shins (those hills are brutal) then taking a very hot shower.  Tonight is Harry Potter!!

Have a WONDERFUL Sunday, mes amies!!

Bad Run

Tonight I had one of those runs.  You know, the kind where after you've barely finished, you're asking yourself how the HELL you're going to run 13.1 miles when you can barely run 3.5?  Yeah.  I don't know what was going on, but my body was not having it.  My chest felt like it was going to explode, I got a sharp pain under my bust (on the right side, bien sur), and my legs felt like lead.  I had to stop multiple times to "drink water" and every minute felt like an hour.  Miserable.  I know this happens, I know that every run can't be a good run, but what the heck??  How can I run 5 miles no problem on Sunday (with HILLS no less) and barely squeak out 3.5 tonight?  Depressing.