sidebar | life and training 12.2 – 12.8

I’m getting tired of the 5K distance methinks.

I’ve certainly had my fun dabbling in the speedier, shorter distances – especially over summer, when sustained efforts much longer than 3 miles feel impossible. Next weekend I’ll be running my fifth 5K since July, sixth race overall.

Mostly, I’m starting to notice some mental laziness kick in. I don’t have as much grit during my harder sessions, even though our recent weather is pretty ideal for my running. I interpret this as my body’s first signal of burnout, and I plan to fully heed it. The upcoming race is Christmas themed – I couldn’t resist the gnome medal (and potential stuffed gnome if I place) offered at the finish line, and the chance of wearing my reindeer socks out in the wild.

My next foray will be a half marathon in February. I decided on this pretty quickly after my running buddy mentioned he was signed up for that race, and I figured, in my I’m fucken tired of the 5K mindset, that I’d take the plunge and go for my first 13.1 since 2020. Five years ago! Hard to believe that duration has flitted by.

So, I look forward to that. I’m trying to kick my weekly mileage up to around 40 consistently, after this Saturday of course. I’ll have 8 weeks of proper training before the half, which doesn’t seem like a whole lot, but I’m in good shape from all my racing this fall and mostly have to crank up my long run and switch over to stamina-based sessions as opposed to sort, fast bursts.

Can’t wait.

Other than Friday, which was a shitstorm and a half, I enjoyed this week a lot. I don’t know why the vibes were so wonky on Friday but nothing seemed to be going right. Work was overwhelming, then my lighting was balls for the cookies I developed (still planning to post cos they’re too good not to, but still), my hand twitched while I wrote my bullet journal layout and caused the pen to slide diagonal across the page, and I was just a giant crabass all day.

That aside, I had some good times. Wednesday I wandered to Willa’s, a place I’ve wanted to try for awhile, for a festive cocktail. The place is decorated beautifully for Christmas and it wasn’t very busy at that hour, and the bartender was absolutely delightful. I don’t usually go for gin but I tried a drink with a rose gin, amaro, cranberry, and “bubbles” and I thoroughly enjoyed it. The weather was lovely and I just enjoyed getting out and surrounding myself with good vibes.

Saturday I joined my mom and my sister (virtually) for a gingerbread house building attempt. “Attempt” being the key word here. I bought this truck kit from Target but could not for the fucking life of me get the fucker to stabilize. A total flop, but I had fun regardless and my mom made her awesome kringle for me to nibble on to quell the frustration.

Sunday I experienced yet another bout of car issues. My service traction light came on, engine light flashed, and the car rumbled as if driving over gravel. Turns out the code she spat back was for a cylinder misfire caused by a faulty ignition coil – a blessedly easy fix, from what I’m told. Hopefully I’ll get her up and running sooner than later, but it put a bit of a wrench in my morning. Nonetheless, I was able to pull through with my plans and my pal picked me up to get lunch/dinner at Angry Chair. A fabulous few hours of chatting, laughing, and eating. I tried their French toast porter (delish) and a behemoth haddock sandwich and fries. Not the best fuel before my speed workout this morning, but worth it for the connection and sharing.

I have so much shit to do this week, and yes, I am still planning to put up that cookie box for all of you! I have a couple more recipes to test and the shebang to actually curate, but she’s in development, I promise!

Cheers and enjoy your week! We’re dialing down to Christmas and I am so not ready.

The Fuck We Cooking This Week?

…A hearty, rich salmon dinner perfect for Christmas.

…A snazzy espresso martini!

…A cozy, simple bourbon cocktail.

…A ridiculously indulgent brunch.

…A homemade riff on a holiday favorite treat.

A Few Things I’m Digging

Tortellini…I’m on a kick with this nifty stuffed pasta lately. I love my White Wine Pumpkin Tortellini during the fall, and just recently made a riff on my Caramelized Mushroom Swiss Tortellini by adding vegetarian sausage, sundried tomatoes, pesto, and spinach to the mix.

Wool socks…Though it seems they don’t sell the knee-high compression socks anymore (they do have these racers if you like that length), I adore my warm and toasty wool Pro Compressions. They have saved my toes during these chilly morning runs of late. I definitely think that plus layering up atop has made cold weather running much more comfy this year than last.

Week in Training

Monday, 12.2: 7 miles, 9:54 pace + 20 minute lift

Back on speedwork after Thursday’s race and oof this was rough. Did not hit anywhere close to what I thought I might, and every rep felt difficult. Maybe it’s the cold and my lack of acclimation, maybe I’m just not recovered well. Either way, got it done. 2 mile warmup, 1.5 mile push (7:55 avg), 800m (3:55), 400m (1:47), 2.5 mile cooldown.

Strength:

• 3 x 10 front squat 50#
• 3 x 10 shoulder press 15#
• 3 x 10 ea. single leg squat 40#
• 4 x 8 mid row 60#
• Jumps and core work

Tuesday, 12.3: 5 miles, 11:05 pace

Refreshing and COLD easy run! Felt okay, and I just love the feeling of being bundly and toasty on a brisk morning.

Wednesday, 12.4: 4.25 miles, 10:32 pace + 3.1 miles, 10:07 pace

I originally hoped to get some speedwork in this morning, but the temp sat around 40 degrees and the wind was pretty hefty, so I decided to put it off until tomorrow and run easy. Threw in some quick strides, topping off at a 5:18 pace – a little leg turnover felt good. I’m testing double run days for the half marathon training cycle I think I’ll be entering soon – so long as the weather stays nice I don’t think it’ll be an issue!

Thursday, 12.5: 5.25 miles, 10:05 pace + 12 minute lift

Intervals felt real hard this morning. I started out pretty strong then just pooped out at the end. Perhaps I need longer recovery times for these sessions. 2 mile warmup, 600 (2:42), 400 (1:43.8), 300 (1:17.2), 200 (:51.8), 100 (:25), 2 mile cooldown. I also overdressed a bit so I became pretty warm by the time I started the fast bits.

Strength:

• 3 x 12 reverse fly 20#
• 10-8-6 ticeps pushdown 24/28/32#
• 3 x 10 lateral raise 15#
• 3 x 10 bench press 50#

Friday, 12.6: 3.18 miles, 11:00 pace

Pretty humid but a very pleasant recovery run overall. 151 bpm!

Saturday, 12.7: 10 miles, 10:54 pace

I enjoyed this trot! Felt pretty in control and strong except when the wind picked up and I ran against it: my face and fingers were quite frozen and I struggled to cut off a portion of cream cheese for my breakfast once I got back inside. Otherwise I was pleased with the rhythm I found and I overall was nice and toasty in my layers.

Total running mileage: 38