sidebar | life and training 11.28 – 12.4

We made cookie houses on Sunday!

I dunno how to describe it, but I’m simultaneously in the Christmas spirit and decidedly not in the Christmas spirit. Mom and I discussed on Sunday how odd it is that I yearn for the stuff in carols, like snow and sleigh bells, yet I’ve never known any of that in my lifetime being a Floridian since birth. Perhaps I lived in the cold in a past life, in an igloo somewhere or some shit. Hard to really embrace the season with 80 degree conditions, and working in food service.

But, I got together with mom and my sister on Facetime to build cookie houses, and that really brought me out of my weird limbo. I bought this adorable hot chocolate stand kit as my project, and mom baked up her own pieces with a few small components I used on my stand. At first it looked like the stand was gonna be something out of a horror film, but it wound up being adorable. Like, look at it. So cute!

I whipped up a batch of my Buttered Rum Hot Chocolate and mom toasted up several slices of homemade stollen, brushed with butter and cinnamon. A sugary, delightful feast. Pretty much lost my appetite the rest of the night, but so be it.

Little bits of connection really do help with dialing into the present, so I encourage ya’ll to do something, with someone you love, that helps you ground. The cookie houses did just that for me. This week J and I are building ours and also buying and decorating our tree! We always get a Fraser fir for the house and I buy a new ornament every year. Gotta find a good one. I plan to whip up some really good appetizers for the occasion, too, which I’m excited to try and share.

Have any fun holiday traditions? Would love to hear them! We watch Charlie Brown Christmas on Christmas Eve and always drive around to look at lights in the week or two prior. Sometimes I join the run club for a 5K that winds through the curated displays put on by the surrounding neighborhoods – but only when I’m feeling ambitious. Which is not typical.

Have a good week, folks. Talk tomorrow with some new fun noms!

The Fuck We Eating This Week?

A spicy vegetarian noodle soup…

A fun cauliflower appetizer for Christmas…

A cozy and decadent lasagna…

A fun twist on chicken nuggets involving no chicken and plenty of dipping sauces…

A bright and merry Christmastime cocktail…

A Few Things I’m Digging

Mugs…I adore the mugs I used for my Buttered Rum Hot Chocolate but they seemed to have vanished from shelves! This pattern is similar in shape and color scheme; it’s the perfect size for a morning cuppa.

Bars…Enjoying Clif Bars again as midmorning snacks on my workdays; right now my favorite is the peanut butter banana flavor!

Coffee…Always look forward to Trader Joes’ Gingerbread ground coffee during the winter. It’s very close on my favorites list with the autumn maple brew.

Sports bra…This v-neck seamless sports bra is the most comfortable thing for running. It’s medium support so good for bustier folks engaging in more high-impact activities like running, but for me it just fits snugly and doesn’t dig into my armpits or anything weird.

Fairy lights…Love how soft and cozy these rose globe lights are; I’ve used them in several of my recent Christmas posts. They’d be lovely on a mantle or hung on the top of a bookshelf or coffee table. Immediate comfort.

Shops & Wish List

Fashion

Target…Would like to revamp my activewear since most pieces I own are 10+ years old! And not really my style anymore, though I wear them out of necessity. Like these cropped active tanks and these ribbed sports bras – digging the longline style because I can also wear them around casually outside of my workouts. I already love the one v-neck bra I own and might pick up another color or two.

Home

Amazon…I’m really pissed because UPS destroyed a candle I ordered from Target and they don’t seem to sell it anymore (and even if they did I don’t trust those bitches with glass), so thinking of grabbing this very similar ceramic tree for my bookshelf.

Week in Training

Monday, 11.28: 10.63 miles, 11:17 pace

Wowee were my legs pissed this whole run. Clunking and funking around, not to mention there was 0 breeze so that didn’t help my energy levels. I seem to always feel extra crummy after a rest day rather than refreshed and invigorated. Backwards, man.

Tuesday, 11.29: 6.75 miles, 11:06 pace + 20 minute upper body

Pretty nice 60 degree morning but can’t quite get my legs unstuck. Heart rate was nice and low, though, so that was encouraging.

Strength:

• 3 x 8 single arm to double arm side raise 15#
• 3 x 12 ea. triceps extension SS 10 kickback 15#
• 3 x 15 waiter curl 25#
• 3 x 12 ea. bent arm side raise 15#

Wednesday, 11.30: 9.31 miles, 11:17 pace + 25 minute lower body

Think my legs are telling me they need some TLC. My heartrate was just fine at 151 bpm average, but my hamstrings were tight and my stride was pretty sloppy. More epsom baths, please.

Strength:

• 3 x 12 sumo deadlift 90#
• 3 x 12 sumo squat 70#
• 3 x 15 calf raise 180#
• 3 x 12 narrow leg press 180#
• 3 x 15 ea. banded hydrant
• Stability work

Thursday, 12.1: 4.05 mile walk (1:03:00)

Friday, 12.2: 7.17 miles, 11:09 pace

An alright trot, good time for thinking.

Saturday, 12.3: 11.07 miles, 11:17 pace + 25 minute lower body

Got into a really nice rhythm midway in the run so let myself groove until I decided I was no longer grooving. Really pleasant, breezy morning, albeit humid.

Strength:

• 3 x 10 front squat SS 10 ea. single leg deadlift 50#
• 3 x 12 ea. single leg bridge SS 20 bird dog 25#
• 3 x 10 narrow squat SS 10 row 60#
• Core work

Sunday, 12.4: 4.05 mile walk (1:03:00)

Total running mileage: 44.9 miles (really)