More Weekend Happenings

I don't usually write posts only about what I'm doing. Because if I did that, it could be rather boring! No. I try to keep the content running/recipe/motivation-related. But I'm enjoying writing weekend recaps. And there's a recipe at the end of this post -- so, if you'd rather just skip to that, feel free!

This weekend went just as fast as usual, unfortunately. Stephen planned to visit his family down in Philadelphia . . . and I stayed behind because with all the working, blogging, and marathon training, I simply have no energy to go anywhere right now. Friday, we made the most of our time together by ordering Indian takeout (like last weekend, if you'll remember) and watching the final episodes of Nip/Tuck. We're so sad to be done with this show!


Thanks to my mother-in-law, Kathy, we each got new phones Friday night. Somehow I lost mine at our weekly trivia match. As a result, I lost my entire contact list, too. Very frustrating. But it's worth it for the better text-ing keyboard! (And -- no. No fancy phones -- I refuse to pay $30 per month for internet!)

I started Saturday off early. 5:15 AM kind of early. With an excellent 8-miler after Stephen departed for PA (and on his trek send me photos of Lululemon, IKEA, and a display of Vibrams that made my heart skip and beat!). Didn't time the run, but it was speedy -- that's for sure. This is the point in marathon training when the 8 mile runs are my favorite. The 5-milers just feel like busy work, but the 8s make me feel powerful, strong. I'd love to see how I could perform in a 15K right now. I wonder if I could beat my Boilermaker PR?

My parents were up for the rest of the day. We drove through the country and enjoyed the gorgeous weather. We even took a nice 30 minute stroll through a nearby park. I wore my Vibrams, of course.


Saturday night was relatively uneventful. I watched The September Issue and ate tomato/mozzarella/basil sandwiches with some ginger brew. I went to bed as early as I woke: 9:30 PM (I'm a total rock star!).


Sunday was another early day -- but I slept in until 5:30 AM. Hah. Right? Anyway, I wanted to get a start on my long run before the sun came out. I'm so glad I did, too. I got out the door at around quarter to 7 (had to eat and wake up a bit before I laced up my shoes). But around three hours (and 20.2 miles at 9:03 pace) later, I finished my second of three super long runs for the marathon.

Only.
One.
More.
20.
Mile.
Run.
To.
Go!

Thankfully, after two weeks of soggy (worse than soggy -- these runs were more like swimming than running) long runs, it didn't rain one drop! Still, I'm dedicated. There's no question after the horror-movie-esque scene that greeted me when I took off my right shoe after the run. (There's blood -- so, you may want to avert your eyes!)


If this isn't TMI. I don't know WHAT is. Anyway, I'm still not really sure how I got the cut on my toe. I felt some discomfort at the beginning of the run. After a while, it just got better. Needless to say, these socks are in the garbage. Ugh. Less than 35 days until the marathon!

Sunday was really a blur. A tired, in-bed . . . yet cleaning the house from top-to-bottom while doing loads-upon-loads of laundry blur. Stephen drove home and ran his long run in the heatwave. (Remember last week when I mentioned how excited we are for fall? The weather gods are definitely saying PSYCHE! right now.) When I have a particularly steamy run, I usually crave juice. Water. Coconut water. Fruit. More juice. Gatorade. Juice. Did I mention a cold cup of juice with lots of ice? Limes?

OK. I sound like a crazy person, but this is how my mind gets in the last mile. When I'm almost home. Almost close enough to my blender to blend together a post-long run slurpee:


What you'll need . . .

• 1/2 cup sorbet (I used hibiscus-coconut water kind -- delish!)
• 1 cup frozen blueberries
• 1 cup coconut water
• 1 tablespoon chia seeds

Method . . .

1. Just put everything in a blender and blend.
2. Adjust content to reach your desired consistency. I liked mine just like this -- not too thick. Very slurp-able.

The chia seeds, coconut water, and blueberries make this slurpee a perfect recovery drink. When it's especially hot, I don't like to eat much after a run. I usually feel sick. But it's important to get some calories and water into your system. So, always be sure to at least sip on something -- even if it's only a glass of water or chocolate milk. Then eat as soon as you're able -- preferably some protein.


We've had many questions now about how we change our caloric intake during heavy training times. The quick answer is that we don't really count or "take a look" at how much we're eating, necessarily. We let our bodies be our guide. If we're hungry, we eat. We try to eat the "best" foods. Whole foods. Healthy foods. But that's not always easy. Tomorrow we'll post more info on this topic -- as well as back briefly to that mystical marathon weight gain. So, stay tuned!

What did you do this weekend? Are you experiencing the same heatwave in your neck of the woods? We're definitely not enjoying this last burst of summer. Bring on the sweaters and cider . . . the crunchy leaves and pumpkin pies, please! Well, at least for now we have pumpkin macaroni and cheese!

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