sidebar | life and training 8.25 – 8.31
Last week felt LONG.
Seriously keep forgetting it’s Labor Day. It never really stops functionality around the city aside from schools and government offices, and usually makes my favorite haunts pretty quiet since people head to the beach or out of town for the long weekend. I never work Labor Day but that’s only because I always have Mondays off. No real ceremony about it.
This past week was BUSY between running, work, and life. I’m in the process of setting up my house with fall decorations and I still have more I want to accomplish, but it being September 1st most of the main adornments are out of the bin. We’re sprucing up the bedroom with golden and burgundy bedsheets and throws, and I still have yet to find some good candles to place around the living room and bathroom. Today, thankfully, is Target Day, so hopefully I can accomplish all that.
I’m currently testing out the New Balance Rebel V4 as my speed shoe. My beloved Tempos are no longer in circulation and I need to find a fitting substitute for my faster days (and, eventually, my everyday runs, since my old Tempos will kick the bucket at some point). I used them today for a threshold workout and they felt lovely and springy. I think we’ll be good friends down the line and I’m tempted to buy a couple more pairs.
I racked up over 50 miles of running last week and boy was I tired. The 10K pace and threshold workouts don’t wipe me out all that much, but Wednesday I did a faster interval session and it knocked the daylight from me.
But, after my second run, I took Little Miss Ba out for a well-earned cappuccino at Paradeco. Despite wanting to nap instead I promised myself I’d take the time to visit St. Pete and I’m glad I did: the shop was pretty quiet and the coffee delicious as always. I passed maybe an hour there working on an Instagram reel and just enjoying the vibes.
Saturday J and I embarked on a little day date out to St. Pete. He was craving paella so we started at Ceviche for lunch. Our first tapa was pan con tomate and BOY do I understand the hype surrounding this simple dish! Grilled bread, tomato, good olive oil, garlic, and flaky salt. I want to make this all the damn time now at home. SO good. We also shared a bowl of marinated olives before our lush paella de mariscos was served. There was a whole ass lobster on top! Absolutely delicious fare overall.
We wandered around the Imagine Museum afterwards and took part in the little marble hunt the curators put on to amuse guests. We got cute stickers as a reward. I didn’t realize this glass art exhibit was founded by a massive scientology donor and practitioner and that kinda made me feel weird once I made that connection. So, not necessarily a place I’ll patron often – a lot of the art reflected the belief system and it was kinda odd among the neat glass sculptures displayed on the first level.
We finished off with cappuccinos at Intermezzo. J bought a neat sounding bottle of wine to go, and Little Miss Ba got her second coffee of the week! I hope I’m not overloading her with caffeine. But, she doesn’t seem to mind and hasn’t gotten too jazzy yet.
This week I’m doing a little running cutback. Nothing terribly significant, probably 8-10 miles, but enough to replenish my motivation a bit and not get stuck in too high mileage before marathon training even kicks off. I’ve been feeling pretty good overall but it’s never a bad idea to give myself a breather to prevent burnout.
A few good meals from the week: sausage-zucchini-potatoes (the usual), an autumnal quinoa salad with apples and cranberries, and my honeycrisp salad with sausage and homemade rolls. Comfy, hearty, filling fare.
Expect some more snippets of my fall decorating in the coming weeks, and more running-related reels on the IG. I know that’s not what many of you are there for but I find them enjoyable and, if anything, my social media is a place for me to post what calls to me.
Enjoy the long weekend, and we’ll talk next week!
The Fuck We Cooking This Week?
…A cozy pizza with sundried tomato pesto.
…Trying out a seasonal muffin after they failed last week!
…A spiced cider bourbon cocktail.
A Few Things I’m Digging
SaltStick... I mentioned this brand last week I think, but this weekend I tried the Green Apple flavor and honestly like it better than the Lemon Lime. They’re easy to get down on the run and definitely do help.
Free Prints…My mom’s used this app for years to get cheap photos to switch out on her wall, and lately I’ve been taking advantage of their paid and shipping-only services for my own seasonal setups. They’re inexpensive and the quality is great for my home usage. I recently put up a trio of 16 x 20 in fall-themed posters and love how they look. At around $15 a pop, they’re WAY more reasonable than going to an office supply store.
Oats…Big fan of apple cinnamon oats for the fall! I dice up some apple and banana, mix with oats, cinnamon, and water, and top with more apple slices and nut butter. So warming and tasty, and filling too.
Pickles, Peaches, and Palomas
Squeezing out some last-minute, late summer eats and sips? Here’s a little list of treats to try to bide these last hot days until the pumpkin officially reigns!
Dill Pickle Crunch Pasta Salad
Grilled Balsamic Hot Honey Peach Shrimp Bowls
Peaches and Cream Cinnamon Rolls
This Week’s Menu
Meatless Monday…Honeycrisp Apple Brie and Candied Walnut Kale Salad
Taco Tuesday…Sheet Pan Blackened Shrimp Poblano Tacos
Wednesday…Creamy “Bacon” and Gnocchi Vegetable Soup
Thursday…Fig, Brie, and Caramelized Shallot Pizza
Friday Happy Hour…Pumpkin Patch Bourbon Smash
Saturday Baking…Movie Night Popcorn Chocolate Chip Cookies
Sunday BBQ…“BLT” Dip
Shops & Wish List
Fashion
H&M…Eyeing these cozy rib-knit sweaters (love the burgundy and light beige melange) and this oversized sweater if the beige comes back in stock.
Home
Michael’s…LOVE these pumpkin taper candles (dining table adornment) and these LED pumpkin lights for my entertainment center.
Week in Training
Monday, 8.25: 9.1 miles, 9:29 pace + 30 minute legs
My legs and heartrate did just fine during this session, but my lungs were NOT having it for some reason. I managed to perform in my desired pace range but goodness it felt harder than it should’ve. I had great turnover but I couldn’t regulate my breathing so it was kinda everywhere – thankfully, I didn’t cramp. The protocol: 6 x 1200m @ 10k effort with 75 second recovery. Ran 7:52, 7:45, 7:46, 7:45, 7:46, and 7:42, for an overall average of 7:46. Just where I wanted to be, I wish it felt smoother though.
Strength:
- 3 x 10 ea. reverse lunge 40#
- 3 x 15 calf press 180#
- 4 x 8 ea. single leg press 100#
- 3 x 12 ea. single leg squat with toe tap 15#
- 3 x 15 sumo squat 60#
- 3 x 15 ea. single leg bridge drop
- :30 Copenhagen/side
Tuesday, 8.26: 4.5 miles, 11:28 pace + 15 minute core
Easy peasy miles at 148 bpm.
Wednesday, 8.27: 8.75 miles, 9:53 pace + 4.5 miles, 10:35 pace
The protocol: 3 x (600/400/300/200/100) descending from 5K goal pace to as-fast-as-possible. 75 seconds between the 600 and 400, 90 between the rest, and 2:30 between each set. The first set felt smooth and the final two I wanted to die, but they went really well overall, I’d argue. Ran 7:17, 7:21 and 7:20 for the 600s, 7:06, 7:07, and 7:12 for the 400s (the final may have been inaccurate due to deadzone), 6:43, 6:47, and 6:46 for the 300s, 6:21, 6:27, and 6:24 for the 200s, and 5:49, 5:59, and 5:54 for the 100s.
During my second run I tested the New Balance Rebel V4. So far I love it! The stack height isn’t too alarming and it was cushy and light. Will test it out on speedwork next week.
Thursday, 8.28: 7 miles, 11:28 pace + 25 minute upper body
I was SO tired today so my run was extra slow. I’ve been doing so much tempo/threshold work lately that I forgot how beaten up I feel sometimes after faster intervals. I also took it easy with my lifts because I had no energy after work and there were three people in the weight room. Honestly, what I did felt good and I’m happy I got something in.
Strength:
- 3 x 12 ea. single arm press SS 10 press 15#
- 3 x 10 skullcrusher 30#
- 4 x 10 hammer curl 15#
- 3 x 10 ea. side raise 15#
- 3 x 12 palloff press SS 10 ea. single arm balanced row 15#
Friday, 8.29: 4.25 miles, 11:24 pace + 15 minute core
Nice, chill miles in the morning at 147 bpm.
Saturday, 8.30: 13 miles, 11:18 pace
Slog of a run, just kinda felt slow and uninspired. Heart rate was higher than I’d like though it was really still out and I don’t think I did a great job Friday preparing for this longer jaunt. Not the worst run, though, and I felt pretty consistent the whole time as far as effort went which was a good thing! Took in four SaltSticks, one every three miles, and those helped quite a bit along with my copious water stops.
Sunday, 8.31: 30 minute elliptical
Most of the morning was a washout and thus it got RIDICULOUSLY humid in the afternoon, so I kept to the elliptical instead.
Total running mileage: 51.1
