Rants, Running + Training

By kilax, December 9, 2016 6:17 am

After class this morning, I was talking to the owner of the studio and he mentioned that he saw my picture on the Frosty Foot race brochure, and commented on how it is now a 2 mile race.

Um… what?

Rachel is on there too!

When I sent in my registration form for this race, it mentioned the race would be at a new area, but said it would be a 5K. This is my goal 5K each year, and I have already started training with it in mind and, so to hear it got changed to a 2 mile race made me feel upset. Which I realize is completely silly – it’s just a race.

So I guess now I have a few options:

1. Train for the two miler
2. Find a different 5K to train for and still do the two miler
3. Find a different 5K to train for an ask for a refund on the two miler
4. Ask for a refund on the two miler and train for nada! Ha!

Blah. It’s a crappy move on their end to switch up the distance after registration has been opened. I wish I had a copy of my original registration form! I can see online that they switched it to a three miler, before it became the two miler.

And now it’s listed as being an all-terrain course, so, yeah… meh. But there’s worse things in life so whatever! At least the people who work there are super nice – they actually called when they got my registration form to confirm my new address. Hopefully they’re as nice when I call this time just to see what’s up with the switcharoo.

Life

By kilax, December 8, 2016 6:11 am

• Did anyone else brave Bath & Body Works this weekend for the candle sale? I had NO idea how crazy it would be. Steven and I were running errands that morning and I brought him with to make sure to get scents he likes too and whoa – the store was PACKED! Everyone was being civilized and kind though, and the employees worked hard to get us out of there in a decent amount of time (I think we waited twenty minutes to check out?). And now we have candles we both like.

• I had a Shutterfly coupon for holiday cards and… decided to use it! This will be the first time we’ve sent out personalized holiday cards!
• Oh look! Bicycling magazine is sharing information from the same study that Runner’s World keeps sharing over and over, but not in a disordered way! Here, Bicyling is saying to take in sugar to help with a bonk during a ride. AND TO ACTUALLY CONSUME THE DRINK.

• Any bets on whether these presents will last until Steven’s family gets here next week?!

• It’s getting really cold here, which I don’t mind, but I am worried about the outdoor cats. We’ve built a structure around their houses, and insulated it a bit, but I don’t think it’s enough. Maybe they can come in to the garage until we build them something better.

Link to Random Thoughts Thursday 118

House

By kilax, December 5, 2016 6:14 am

And this is why #8 was on my “Things I’m Excited About in December” list!

On Sunday we got about five inches of that beautiful (but actually very dangerous) thick, heavy snow that covers everything and makes it look magical (and sound really creaky and make your power go out in the middle of the night), and makes you feel like you’re sitting in a snow globe!

I love our home year round, but decorating it for the holiday and seeing it with snow on it really makes me fall in love with it all over again.

Running + Training

By kilax, December 4, 2016 5:28 pm

Highlight of the Week: Running in a new state!

Monday | November 28, 2016: 1,239 yd swim + 5 m run
Loc: FitNation, Time: 30:28, Pace: 2:28 min/100 yd avg, Difficulty: easy, Felt: good, enjoyed practicing flip turns
Loc: Gurnee, Temp: 41°/43°, Time: 50:00, Pace: 9:59 avg, Difficulty: easy, Felt: good, a bit hungry
Tuesday | November 29, 2016: 4 m run
Loc: Cinci/Newport/Convington, Temp: 51°/49°, Time: 43:02, Pace: 10:45 avg, Difficulty: easy (stopped a lot for pics), Felt: excited to run someplace new
Wednesday | November 30, 2016: rest
Thursday | December 1, 2016: 8 m run
Loc: VP Woods loop, Temp: 36°/37°, Time: 1:21:09, Pace: 10:08 avg, Difficulty: mostly easy, Felt: great, just a bit hungry
Friday | December 2, 2016: teaching strength class + 1,008 yd swim + 5 m run (incl. 12×1:00)
Strength: resistance bands, Difficulty: easy, Felt: good
Loc: FitNation, Time: 25:20, Pace: 2:19 min/100 yd avg, Difficulty: easy, Felt: sloppy
Loc: Gurnee, Temp: 34°/35°, Time: 49:27, Pace: 9:53, Difficulty: medium, Felt: decent, tired legs, happy it wasn’t windy!
Saturday | December 3, 2016: 9 m run + teaching strength class
Loc: VP Woods loop, Temp: 31°/32°, Time: 1:35:05, Pace: 10:34 avg, Difficulty: easy, Felt: decent, didn’t dress warm enough, oops!
Strength: plyo and boxing, Difficulty: easy, Felt: good
Sunday | December 4, 2016: 13 m run + 10 m ride
Loc: Around Lake Andrea and back, Temp: 32°/33°, Time: 2:16:49, Pace: 10:31 avg, Difficulty: mostly easy, Felt: good, just upset stomach at the end
Indoor Ride Time: 38:07, Pace: 15.7 mph avg, Difficulty: easy, Felt: good

Notes:

• My arms were SORE during my Monday morning swim. One of the students taking my fitness boxing class has a really strong punch (it’s fantastic!!!) and my soreness was the result of boxing with her. I love how strong my students are!
• All of my runs were in the morning this week, and it really helped my mood for the whole day. it would be great if I could keep this going! I have flexible work start time, so I might as well run in the am when it’s light out, and work until later in the day!
• I love cold weather running because I can wear vests and jackets with pockets to hold my stuff – instead of wearing something around my waist. However, I must not be in “cold weather” mode yet because I’ve dressed too cold a few times. On Saturday’s run, I saw it was in the low 30s and not windy and actually thought “that sounds warm enough for shorts!” No, Kim, no. And I wore a regular long sleeve tech shirt under my vest instead of Under Armour Cold Gear. Also, dumb. I was smarter Sunday – but still not smart enough to remember to put my phone in a glove – it got so cold it shut off!
• I ran in four states this week (IL, OH, KY and WI) – I wonder if that’s the most I’ve run in in a week?
• November recap! I ran 144 miles (25 runs), cycled 45 miles (4 indoor rides) and swam 8,190 yards (7 swims). My coldest run was 23°F and my warmest was 69°F. I taught 7 strength classes and 3 fitness boxing classes.

Link to Training Week 371

Life

By kilax, December 3, 2016 6:16 pm

Ha!

But at least now I know where to take ours!

I ran by this sign in the forest preserve next to our house this morning, so, yay for tree drop off being so close! The last time we had a real tree, we dropped if off at a (different) forest preserve, as well. I think it’s cool they chip the trees and use them for the trails and landscaping – that could be YOUR Christmas tree you’re running on!

Life

By kilax, December 2, 2016 9:32 am

1. Teaching four fitness boxing classes! My students have really been getting in to it, and that makes it so fun for me. And this month, my brother-in-law will attend one of my classes and two of the classes will be holiday themed (Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve)!
2. Going to Dallas! It’s my third year going there marathon weekend (2015, 2014). Only this year, no marathon, ha. I can’t wait to see my otra familia, be silly, eats lots of good food, visit Luca’s school, and see Meb again!!!
3. Steven’s family’s visit for the holiday (early)! That’s why we got the house all gussied up – for their visit. We usually don’t decorate when we won’t be here for the holiday (we’ll be in Iowa). Or maybe we would have this year since it’s our first holiday in the new home? Who knows! I love it all festive, so maybe we’ll start decorating every year.
4. Making a tofurkey and mashed potatoes when Steven’s family is here. I’ve been craving them since Thanksgiving!
5. Seeing the new Star Wars movie. I wonder if I’ll want to see this one several times in the theater like I did the last?
6. Steven’s Birthday! Poor Steven has a December 22nd birthday. We gotta do something special to celebrate it away from the holiday!
7. Being with my family on Christmas and watching them open their gifts!
8. Seeing our house with snow on it – it just looks so pretty!
9. Cold weather running – I love it… as long as I can take a hot bath after. Ha! Hopefully I’ll get lots of runs with family and friends this month during our visits!
10. Getting one month closer to meeting Baby William!

This list could go on and on but I’ll stop at ten! What’s on your list?

Life, Music, Running + Training

By kilax, December 1, 2016 6:44 am

• Ha, when Steven and I were at Target on Sunday, I stopped in the cat food aisle to get the ONE flavor of wet cat food Data likes (Mariner’s Catch) and that Target only had three cans of it left. I had bought the last five cans at a different Target earlier that week. So I say to Steven “This must be really popular – it’s sold out at both locations!” And this lady walking by in the main aisle (not the cat food aisle) turns around and says “What’s so popular, I have to know?!” (not in a nosy way, but in a “is it so popular I need one too?” way). And I am like “this flavor of cat food…?” “Oh.” Ha ha ha. Ha.

• We saw Arrival last night. Has anyone else seen it? It’s definitely a movie you want to discuss after seeing it. And a movie where I did not see the twist coming (but that’s why it’s called a plot twist, ha).

• Gosh, our leisure schedule is so much different at the new house (as expected). We used to see movies much more frequently. The last time we saw a movie was five months ago!
• Rihanna’s song “Love on the Brain” is my new “listen to it on repeat five-six times while running” song.  Anyone else digging it?

• All of the new sets of balls we got to decorate the tree came with some glitter balls (first picture below). And we have a STRICT “no glitter in the house” rule (Steven HATES glitter). So… we have lots of glitter balls that won’t get used (second picture below). Maybe I should put them on the mailbox garland?

• Something strange happened at Starbucks the other day when I had them reload my card (in the store). They accidentally charged 20 cents instead of 20 dollars and there was no way to undo the transaction and fix it… but somehow, Starbucks still put 20 dollars on my card. They said it was like a Christmas present from Starbucks! I was using it to get someone holiday gifts, but had to add on the guy behind me in line’s drink too!
• I think I can get to 2000 miles run this year if I don’t slack off this month! I am at 1845 miles right now, and I typically run 40 miles a week. So if I stick with that, I should be good! It’s going to be hard with all the travel and guests BUT the people I am spending time with run too/or understand that I run! I can make it happen!

Link to Random Thoughts Thursday 117

House, Life

By kilax, November 30, 2016 6:11 am

Yay! All the holiday decorations are up! It’s not a lot, but I’m going to document it here so I can look back in the future if I want to set it any of it up the same way.

Living room:

Our Fraser Fir tree is eleven feet tall on its own, and a bit taller in the stand. It has 700 lights on it. We (expectedly) had to buy more lights and ornaments. I got the LED lights to try and those were a big NOPE – way too harsh of a white! We went back and bought conventional lights.

As kids, we’d spend Christmas Eve at my mom’s parent’s home, and they always had metal “NOEL” letters that we’d rearrange to say “EL NO” or “LEON” and see how long it took an adult to find it. We thought it was really funny. I was happy when my mom gifted me my own “NOEL” set one year!

A fire place with no mantel!

We’ll see how long it takes for Data to knock these down. He is getting in to ALL the decorations. And I don’t mean he’s “in to them” metaphorically. He is physically getting in to them and messing them up and knocking them around (and eating them and throwing them up).

Dining Room:

Steven said, “It looks like coffee = joy.” Ha!

Downstairs bathroom:

Upstairs hallway/stair:

Upstairs bathroom:

Front door:

Mailbox:

And now… to put all those storage boxes back in the basement. Blah. Ha ha.

Running + Training, Travel

By kilax, November 29, 2016 6:40 am

(Or any travel)

… is the opportunity to run someplace new!

I’m in Cincinnati for work and had time for a short run this morning. And bonus – I’ve never run in Ohio before so I get to add that to my “states run in” list (I also ran through Kentucky today, but I’d run there before, also on work travel).

I wasn’t sure how safe it would be to run alone, but I talked to the front desk about it, and they said it was safe, and then I saw A LOT of runners out – yay! I wish I would have had time to run farther!

Now, let’s hope my work day goes as fast (and is as enjoyable?) as this run did (was)!

Life

By kilax, November 28, 2016 7:12 am

Was anyone else up late last night/this morning buying their Rogue One: A Star Wars Story tickets? 

I was! And I’m not sure why because:

1. Fandango servers couldn’t handle it, like when The Force Awakens tickets went on sale. I was online at 11:01 pm cst, trying multiple browsers on multiple computers, my phone browser and the fandango app and it sat and span or said “site maintenance.” Chrome finally worked around 11:30 pm.

2. The showtime I’m getting tickets for (Sunday 4:00 pm) probably could have waited until this morning!

3. It feels like such a money grab and that bugs me. And it takes a lot for me to say that, because Star Wars are my favorite films.

But! I have four tickets and am looking forward to going with Steven and his dad and brother!