Happy Halloween from Colleen :)

I like when my name rhymes with things, so that's why Halloween is a good holiday.  But here's some other reasons why:

Candy.  Free candy.

My favorite Halloween candy will always be Kit Kats I think.  M&M's and Nerds were also big favorites of mine.  I eat M&M's on the reg, but I don't think I've had Nerds in forever.  It's not candy, but here's a cupcake I ate (at 9am) from a co-worker:

Costumes.

There is no costume in the world that will ever be as good as my parrot costume.  I wore it multiple years and I love it and wish I had it for my children, but it is gone forever.  I am unfortunately not wearing the wings in this picture, but you can kind of see the tail - the wings were awesome and colorful like that.

Senior year of college, I was Pippy Longstocking.  My roommate Colleen, who now has her very own running blog too, did my hair really awesome like that.

I was Dora the Explorer during 5th year of college.  The night before I was Dora, I was a gymnast which was also an awesome costume but I unfortunately have no pictures of.  I wore my cousin Katie's red, white, and blue leotard and matching scrunchy with tons of glitter in my hair.  Anyways, I bought the Dora the Explorer backpack, kept the tag on, then returned it after.  That's how it's done.

 

Being a troll with Christina was easily the best costume of my adult life (thus far).  My hair had remnants of green in it for days, no matter how hard I scrubbed, but it was worth it.  I haven't worn the nude body suit since, but I hope to one day soon.

The annual Halloween card from the Grandparents Smith.

My freshman year of college was the first year of this card.  It has since become an annual happening.  The front says, "A Scary Thought" and on the inside, "Life Without God." Usually they include a $1, but this year it was even better...at least for me that is.  A scratch off lotto ticket was inside and I won $10!  This year's card also had 3 riddles to solve; do you know the answers?

What do ghosts serve for dessert?

Who won the skeleton beauty contest?

What do witches put on their hair? 

See and Be Seen Running Fashion Show

Since I'm on Fleet Feet's email list, I get emails with information about all sorts of events that they are hosting.  I have gone to 2 so far...and have completely failed to post about the first one because of the more time-sensitive Chicago Marathon posts, but I promise that is coming soon.  And it will be well worth the wait because I met a celebrity at it.

Last night's event was the See and Be Seen running fashion show.  That's my kind of fashion show.  Rachel came with me and we had a really great time!

We arrived and got seats near a little table, which was clutch because we each ordered a fruity girly cocktail.  What else would you order at a fashion show?  Dave Zimmer, the owner of Fleet Feet, was hosting the show as MC for the night and he was awesome!  At the beginning he said it'd be a fun night of fashion, fitness, food, and booze.  And that it was.

The show was great with models from local news outlets and with other athletic affiliations, each showing off this season's hottest running fashions.  Each company seems to want to spruce up the "average black running tight" by offering new colors or patterns.  I fully support that idea, as I love being as colorful as possible, as demonstrated by what I wore in the St. Louis Half Marathon this past weekend:

Dave also announced that everyone attending would get a $20 merchandise credit to spend at the after party in the store (the actual fashion show was at Second City.)  The ticket to the show was $20, so as long as you bought something, it's like the ticket was free!  Now, obviously, this was to get people to spend money in the store...and it worked.

Another great marketing ploy they used?  Get people drunk while shopping.  I know from experience that drunk shopping is quite fun and you will in fact spend more money than you would if you were sober.  This is also the case at bars or restaurants too; the drunker you get, the more willing you are to spend that money buying your friends shots, etc.

I'd say 98.7% of the attendees had wine...but I like beer.

I only had 2 drinks the entire night, so I actually was not drunk shopping - I just love running clothes.  And this comes nowhere close to the time Grace, Kristin, and I went out for a Mexican lunch and margaritas before Christina's bachelorette party and went drunk shopping in Victoria's Secret.  (PS Google Blogger still doesn't recognize bachelorette as a word - why is that?)

I bought 2 items.  Even with the $20 credit, it sure adds up quickly.  I must say that blog endorsement of products really works because I first saw this shirt on the Hungry Runner Girl blog (click here for the post) and I really wanted it.  So then when it was featured in the Fleet Feet fashion show, I just had to get it.  And almost fought people for my size.  Picture women runners holding a glass of wine in one hand and furiously shopping. (There weren't many men at the fashion show, but a few.)

Anyways, it is the Brooks Equilibrium Base LS.  I'm about to go run in it tonight and I hope it feels as awesome as it looks. I'll report back tomorrow.  I also bought a Brooks running hat.  I really wanted a hat with a ponytail hole, so I found a pretty pink one that should keep me warm and stlyin'.  Rachel got a matching one and you know how much I love matching outfits, so I'm sure we'll break those out on the lakefront together soon enough.

So time to hit the road in the rain now! I haven't run in rain in awhile, but I do like that it's an opportunity to wear a hat.

Have you ever been to a fashion show?

What is your favorite brand of running apparel?

The Most Delicious Turkey Sandwich

It's TWIN DAY!!  I don't think I've mentioned enough how much I love matching outfits - for running or for real life.  The workday is going to be a million times better knowing Grace is sitting at her desk in DC wearing the exact same outfit as me.  Today is a pretty exact match Twin Day since we have the same top from The Limited.  But sometimes we have Twin Days where we just say wear a khaki pencil skirt, a blue top, and a white cardigan.  I think we need to get even more people to join in on Twin Days.  Oh and on Wednesdays, we wear pink.

I had big plans for last night.  I was going to leave work, go to Walgreens, run 6-8 miles, get ready really fast, and meet Mariel and Steph for dinner.

Around 4pm, the sky started to look dark so I decided running wasn't going to happen.  I was still sore from Monday's long run and I could use the extra time to go to the grocery store.  I planned to take either today or tomorrow as a rest day, so I figured I'd just switch it up.  Here's what actually happened last night:

(This is called "The Colleen Tracker" - as named by Rachelle.  I have a habit of telling people really minuscule details of my day that really don't matter to anyone and doing so in the most long-winded fashion possible...which is why I like having this blog)

Walgreens - I needed a prescription and picked up some household items so that Lauren and I can live like real people in our apartment.  Normally, we don't buy things like toilet paper, paper towels, sponges, etc.  We go "shopping" at our parents houses when either of us goes home on the weekend.  Our moms have Costco memberships so why should we buy things for ourselves when they can buy it in bulk for us?  Anyways, I forgot to "shop" while I was home on Saturday and we desperately needed a few things.

Treasure Island - This is such a wildly overpriced grocery store.  But the man at the deli who sliced my turkey was very pleasant even though they were out of the first two types of turkey I asked for.  And the man in the produce section was very kind as well.  I was about to grab gala apples and he stopped me and told me to take them from a box he had just brought out straight from the cooler.  I don't think having nice workers is worth me paying a bit more for groceries though.

Here's where things get fun:

Dinner - After my errands, I got home and got ready to go out for dinner.  But then it started pouring and thundering and lightening and nobody wants to go walk around in that.  We decided to reschedule and I was OK with that since now I could use some of my new groceries for dinner.  I didn't feel like really "cooking" (see my definition of cooking below), so I settled on making a turkey sandwich, but this was better than any average turkey sandwich I've made!

wheat bread slightly toasted

basil pesto hummus

cucumbers

turkey

So basically it's just your average turkey sandwich, but I used cucumbers instead of lettuce and put the basil pesto hummus on the bread.  That was probably one of the best ideas I have had in awhile.  Usually I buy garlic hummus, but the basil pesto flavor called out to me and I'm glad it did.  My eating habits are very elementary so putting hummus on a turkey sandwich was new and wild to me.

I meant to only use the turkey for weekday lunch sandwiches, but it really did the job tonight when I wasn't intending to cook in the first place.  And to me, cooking means making buttered pasta.  Sometimes I get gourmet and add feta cheese.  We can add cooking to a list of things I should probably learn soon.  I was just going to say that I am good at baking though.  But that's actually not true.  I am a boss at making brownie mix out of a box, but that's about as far as it goes.  And that brings me to my next point.

Cookies - Pumpkin cookies from a box mix.  They came out amazing.  And I made them even more amazing by using Lotus Biscoff Spread as frosting (basically cookie butter).  You can't add quite as much as regular frosting because it's much thicker - almost like a peanut butter consistency.  I was going to add chocolate chips to the mix, but forgot to buy those which means I'll have to make these again soon.  This box wouldn't have expired until May of 2014, so I can go stock up on quite a few boxes to get my fill of pumpkin things throughout the year, and not just right now in the fall.

Marathon Signs - Catherine's marathon is this Sunday!!  So I had to make some signs :)  I do not want to show any pictures though because they have to be a surprise while she is running.

What do you do on a rainy night?

What is the best food idea you've had lately?

Race Photo Commentary

Get ready friends, I have race photos to show from the Chicago Half Marathon.  Race photos are always the worst.  I'm very jealous of people who manage to look good (aka like they aren't suffering a slow, painful death) while they run because I have never been one of those people.  However, I actually think these ones are far better than any of my race photos in the past.  I did not buy the pictures, so we'll have to deal with the watermark on them unfortunately.  Marathon Foto took SO many pictures along this course - they seemed to be everywhere!  I picked a small sampling to provide some commentary on.

I close my eyes when I run:

I don't really close my eyes when I run (at least I don't think I do?).  I just look down the whole time.  I don't know why I do this, but I think I am really conscious of the surface I'm running on and don't want to trip.

My sparkly headband is so awesome:

As is the rest of my outfit.  And I guess sometimes I open my eyes and look around.  Anyways, I can't get over how much I'm in love with the headband and the tank top.  I'll try to stop talking about them so much.  I also really liked the compression socks.  I bought them the day before because I had a Fleet Feet gift card and heard that compression socks can help with recovery.  I had no intention of running in them until the morning of the race and I'm really glad I did.  And then I felt like a tool when we were at breakfast and I was still wearing them. (I did change out of all of my other sweaty clothes luckily though.)

I try out new ways of holding my iPod:

My iPod was in my sports bra, as I did in the North Shore Half Marathon also.  That was the first time I did it and it worked well, so I'll continue doing it for races.  I don't plan to run with the iPod in the Chicago Marathon, at least not for the first half.  But then I might have my mom give it to me for the 2nd half because that half is not as fun and I will need some serious Teenage Dream in my life at that point.  I don't know how the iPod is still functional though.  It has been through so many runs with me - either held in my hand, in it's arm band, or in my sports bra.  I might also try it in my SPI belt sometime.  But I think no matter what, it's going to get sweated on.

Sometimes I try to smile, but it's really really really forced at this point.  And I have really weird, very inward facing knees:

In high school, Catherine and I discovered that my knees point extremely far inward.  This definitely shows in my running form and I wish I could fix it, but that's just how they are I think (that picture doesn't even do it justice).  This might also be why I don't pick my knees up at all when I run.  So I think during the winter when I am confined to the treadmill I'm going to work on my running form.  I learned some good tips from Bart Yasso and a rep from Newton Running this past weekend that I will share in another post soon!

And then I can smile for real after I finish:

Woohoo!  Another half marathon done!  I've lost count, but probably somewhere around 10-ish...but I do a lot "bandit-style" too, just for training or to run with a friend.  I also realized that this was my first just kinda average half marathon.  I think all of my others have been either really strong under 1:40 or really no-training, just kind of run and see what happens and end up close to 2 hours.

Do you ever like how you look in race photos?

How do you hold your iPod while you run?

Hump Day Happenings and Weekly Recap/Plan

Guess what day IT IS.  HUMP DAYYYY.  But I'm going to tell you about Tuesday and why it was different than a normal Tuesday in my life.

Erin and I ordered matching lululemon tank tops for the St. Louis Half Marathon in October!  Besides a pair of their yoga pants, I don't have anything from there since it is so expensive, but we looked at the sale items and found a cute tank we both liked!  The color selection was a bit limited for our size, but we found a cute one  :)  I just hope it won't be too chilly for tank tops by that time!  But if you're going to do a race with someone and don't have matching outfits, you are obviously doing something wrong.

Speaking of, I plan to do this race with Christina and anyone else who would like to join!  I'm hoping some of my cousins will run as well.  It's the Saturday after Thanksgiving and we already have a big Smith family event planned that evening, so why not add even more fun to the day?

I did an easy (but hot) 4 mile run after work last night.  The highlight of the run was seeing someone wearing a UD t-shirt.  I was too late in spotting it though to yell out to him.  I had also seen a guy wearing a UD shirt a few weeks ago when I did a super long run on a weeknight and that time I was too far into go-mode to stop, even for a fellow Flyer.  Next time I will though so I can make new friends.

I bought an amazing little loaf of pumpkin gingerbread from a farmer's market.  Knowing that I could get home and eat that was pretty much the only way I convinced myself that I really needed to run.

I also made an awesome dinner last night.  It was chicken fajita flavored rice + grilled chicken + onions + feta cheese all wrapped in a tortilla.  And then the pumpkin gingerbread for dessert...and I ate some while I cooked...and for breakfast this morning.  So this was way better than my usual meal of plain pasta.

I finally finished all of Desperate Housewives on Netflix and now I need a new show suggestion so please help me!

And now for some running schedules...

Last Week Recap:

Monday - 4.5 miles including twice up a HUGE hill

Tuesday - 10.4 miles normal

Wednesday - REST

Thursday - 6.75 miles tempo

Friday - biked 10 miles easy

Saturday - 2 miles easy

Sunday - Chicago Half Marathon

Total Miles -  about 37-38ish

Good thing I do log all of my runs otherwise I would have no idea what I did.  AND since I posted my plan for the week on her last week, now I can compare how I did...let's just say like usual, I didn't follow it.  But I did get the important workouts in at least I think -a mid-week mid-distance run, a tempo run, and a race!  I even got in some cross training.

Week Who Knows What Number, But 4.5 Weeks Left Plan:

Monday - REST

Tuesday - 4 miles

Wednesday -8 miles

Thursday - 6 miles @ GMP (goal marathon pace)

Friday - REST

Saturday - 6 miles

Sunday -20 miles

Total Miles -  44

So that's all I have to say about that.  Happy Hump Day!

Race Recap: Chicago Half Marathon

I finished the Chicago Half Marathon yesterday!  I was not particularly pleased with the time, but also not as upset as I have been over bad races in my past.  I finished it without quitting or crying, so that's a success in my book.

First of all, I was supposed to be picked up for the 7am race at 6am.  Mac has a history of oversleeping when we are supposed to run (ok it happened once) and thought it would be hilarious to text me at 5:58am saying he just woke up.  I freaked out for about 2 minutes until he called and said he was outside.  Well played.

After parking, we warmed-up by running about a mile to the start.  We were a bit late because of the parking situation (typical Chicago), so there was no time for the bathroom and we hopped in the corral and started almost immediately.

 

This was my first race in the 25-29 year old age group.  These ladies are much faster.  I've read that women distance runners peak in their late 20s, which seems consistent with the age group results.  I would've been in the top 20 of the 20-24 year old age group.  But none of that really matters, just an observation.

There actually wasn't anything super eventful about the race.  I obviously made a sweet playlist for the occasion - all my recent/usual favorites.  The course was flat, a few tiny "hills" like when we had to run up an exit ramp off Lake Shore Drive and over a bridge.  There weren't spectators throughout the entire course, but there were enough that it didn't seem desolate.  The volunteers at all the water stations were high school students who were very enthusiastic and helpful!

The splits that the tracking device got for me were:

5 miles - 36:18 = 7:16/mile

10 miles - 1:16:31 = 7:39/mile total average and 8:02/mile for miles 5-10

Finish - 1:42:04 = 7:47/mile total average and 8:13/mile for last 5k

I also know after the first 5k I was at 22:08, which I thought was perfect because that is the exact time I was at during the first 5k of the North Shore Half Marathon in June.  My plan was to try to do the same pacing I did there, but then not die as much at the end.  I thought I'd be able to do this because my training has been  better in between that race and this one than it was the few weeks/months before that race.

It was about 5 miles into the race that I really started to feel like I couldn't keep up my pace and became a little mentally overwhelmed.  Mac was with me for about 4 miles and then he got ahead (or I slowed down, or a combo of both) and that didn't really bother me because I knew he would be faster, but I also think I should have tried a little harder to keep up.

Throughout the last half of the race, I walked about 30 seconds each mile when I was going through the water stations.  I did have one walk break that was probably about a minute long, but managed to get going again with the encouragement of some of the other runners on the course.  I really should be able to get through a half marathon without walk breaks and obviously I know I can considering I've done it plenty of times before.  But at least I know that while I was running, my pace was still decent... but a few short breaks will really get ya.

After the race, I had a lot of time to stretch out and relax while we waited for Mac's friend Bryce to finish the race.  Then the 3 of us went to get our free slice of Lou Malnati's pizza which is basically heaven on a plate.  I'm pretty sure the walk back to the car was at least as long as the race was.  But after we got in the car, put Teenage Dream on, and were heading for pancakes, life got a lot better.

And once we got to Elly's, I ran into my friend Nani who ran a PR in the race!  Pancakes are always the answer after a race.

I also used this race to see how my Chicago Marathon outfit would work out.  I have to say that I'm pretty happy with it.  I was unsure of the spandex shorts because I have only ever worn them for short runs before.  I bought the compression socks Saturday afternoon with a Fleet Feet gift card I got for my birthday and now I'm basically obsessed with them.  But I'm even more obsessed with my new blue sparkly headband.  Overall, I think the outfit was successful and comfortable.

My mom thinks I should wear a headband like Rafael Nadal and sent me this picture as an example:

Maybe if you added some glitter to it, I would.  I hope I look that intense in my official race photos.  I would however like to personally hunt down the jerk photographer who took a picture of me during one of my walking breaks.  That was not cool, dude.

Photo credit for the pictures of the race medals goes to my friend Megan.  After the race, I saw she had posted a few photos on Facebook from the finish line and she said she was there as a volunteer!  I wish I would've known ahead of time to keep an eye out.

10 Mile Tuesday & MARATHON OUTFIT !!

So boring stuff out of the way first.  I ran 10.4 miles in 1:23:15 (8 minute pace average) after work last night.  Really nothing eventful at all.  My legs were super tight from Monday's hill workout so the first few miles were difficult.  I stopped to stretch about 4 miles in and 8 miles in and then felt a lot better after each time.  A few weeks/months ago I probably would've been super pumped about this run and the fact that I did it after work.  But now 10 miles seems just slightly longer than normal and not nearly as difficult as it used to be.  And now that I've done a 19 mile run after work, I guess I don't have any excuses if my weekends are busy with something else.

And now I want to share something that I am beyond super excited about!  MARATHON OUTFITS!!!

Here's what Angela and I are going to wear:

Unfortunately, I don't think there are actually any Dayton Flyers running singlets out there on the market (even though there totally should be), so we had to improvise.  We bought white Nike singlets from Dick's and took them to a screen-printing shop in the mall to have the logo put on.

I have to give most of the credit for the idea to Catherine (and her brother Mike).  Mike wanted to get Cath and Matt Notre Dame Singlets for Christmas.  It's even more surprising that he couldn't find ND running singlets, but he couldn't.  So he bought plain singlets and had them screen printed with the ND IRISH logo on the front.  And look at Matt helping Cath run along with water bottle in hand!  Can't wait to cheer for you both in a few weeks at the Fox Valley Marathon!!

And as for the rest of the outfit, I don't think we have everything 100% figured out yet, but it will obviously be awesome.  We discussed the options thoroughly on our bike ride last weekend.  Angela wants to wear black spandex shorts.  I was planning to wear gray regular running shorts, but could possibly wear black spandex as well too.  I need to try doing some longer runs in them first though...I LOVE long spandex, but sometimes the shorts ride up a little too much for me.

Either way, matching bottoms aren't nearly as important as the tops.  Another awesome thing is that the Dayton Flyers logo is high up enough on the singlet that the bib number won't cover it up.

Next step in completing the outfit is matching headbands.  I think we are going to look at the Sweaty Bands website to find some.  I took a look already and want this blue sparkly one I think.  Or red.  Or silver or gold.  I think any of those would go with the outfit nicely.  Matching outfits and glitter are 2 things I love, so put the 2 together and I am a happy girl.

 

Shoes are obviously picked out already.  I've been slowly breaking them in, alternating between this green pair and the older pink pair (both Brooks Adrenaline).  I definitely will not be wearing those green socks though, since they are probably long gone in the garbage.   A few weeks ago I bought 2 new packs of socks and threw away any that had holes.  I have a gift card for Fleet Feet, so maybe I'll splurge on some fancy running socks.

Another issue could be the weather.  Unless it's as low as 30-40 degrees (or lower), I think I'll be fine in just the tank.  If it is any colder I might have to wear a long-sleeve shirt underneath, but we'll have to figure that out as the day gets closer.

Hmmm what else will I be wearing?  I'll have to pick which sports bra to wear.  Maybe just blue or black.  And my running fanny pack!!  It's called a SPI Belt and it's awesome and doesn't bounce much and now I don't have to carry my GU in my sports bra.

That little watch you see in the picture - I'll be wearing that too.  I don't want to wear the Garmin during the race.  I would look at the pace way too much.  Just knowing every mile will be just fine.  So...I hope that covers everything and that I don't have to add things like a hat and gloves to this list.

How do you carry things like GU when you run?

Do you ever wear special outfits for racing?

The Courage to Start

I have been given the task of creating a training schedule for my friend (my brother's girlfriend) Erin's first half marathon!!  I'm really excited for this, for multiple reasons.

First of all, I am thrilled that she has decided to take on this commitment! I encourage everyone to start running :) Erin texted me maybe a month or 2 ago and said she was going to do a half marathon in St. Louis. This week I was looking up the dates for future Rock 'N Roll races and saw that the St. Louis event is on October 27th. I texted her to see if this is the one she was planning on running and she said that she wasn't so sure any more. I managed to convince her that she could and that I would come to St. Louis that weekend to run with her!

Another reason I am excited for this is that I kind of get to act as her "coach" and make her a training plan! I love running and am glad I have this opportunity to help her get into it more also. And it's an item to cross off her bucket list! So, I started working on her plan, and find that it's much different making up a plan for a new distance runner (she runs/works out regularly, but she has never ran more than 2 miles at a time) than when I try to come up with plans or workouts for myself. She gave me an indication of what pace she can run, but it's hard to judge what others are capable of as opposed to what I know I am capable of or what might be just a bit to much. It will be a fun challenge. Maybe what will be more fun is making her a training plan for her SECOND half marathon after she gets through this one and wants to go faster!!

Woo go Erin!! - "The miracle isn't that I finished. It is that I had the courage to start."

I'm not quite sure if I'll register for the race or not. I don't like paying for a race that I won't technically be "racing." All these races get expensive! But I'd get a t-shirt I guess, that's always a nice perk.  And a medal.  Even though I was looking up some future races, I decided not to commit to anything until after the Chicago Marathon. But I think this would be a good chance to visit St. Louis (and all my friends and cousins there) and help Erin run her first half marathon! I have lately been thinking that my running has always been mostly competitive, whether with myself or with others, and I have not been having as much "fun" with it as I should (although starting this blog has added fun to my running!) The Chicago Marathon will be a "compete against my own self/PR" race still, but also should be loads of fun to run with Angela wearing our amazing matching outfits...which I will maybe reveal later this week...so get pumped for that! Anyways, I think deciding to run this race with Erin and help her get through it will be a great experience!

On a somewhat related note to training plans, I made a training plan for myself for the Chicago Marathon way back in June, but haven't been doing the greatest job at sticking to it...that's the hard part, isn't it?  But now, as of tomorrow, there will be 7 weeks left until the marathon.  That gives me 4-5 solid weeks of training before I have to taper.  So I'm going to make them the best 4-5 weeks yet.  And to help do so, I'm going to go back to posting the plan week by week here.  I kind of fell out of that habit when I was just running however I felt instead of following my plan.

I did some damage at Dick's this morning. They really rope you in with their coupons. I think these are the shorts I'll wear in the marathon. They'll go nicely with the matching singlets I alluded to above. Also, 13 new pairs of socks!! At Christmas, I got like a million new pairs of socks and threw away all my old socks because let's face it, they almost all had a hole or were just old. And somehow in the last 8 months, all of THOSE pairs managed to get holes. So, time for another sock purge.

On the schedule for tomorrow is 18 miles! That will be my longest training run yet, but I've had a few runs of 15-16 that have gone well, so I think it should be manageable. And I will have Mac to run with instead of my last couple long runs that have been done alone.

What is easier for you - making a training plan or sticking to it?

How often do you have to buy new socks?

Would You Rather...?

...be out running and get mauled by a bear OR hit by a biker?  I read this article about a 12-year-old girl out for a jog in Michigan who got mauled by a bear.  And I thought getting hit by a biker was bad...

This morning, on a short mental break from work, I decided to map out yesterday evening’s run.  The problem was, I could not remember where I ran.  I have no idea where I did my first 2 miles.  I went on www.mapmyrun.com and started mapping one direction down my street, but then I decided that wasn’t the way I ran.  So I started mapping the other way down my street and didn’t think that seemed right either.  So then I decided to back-track because I remember the end of my run.  I back-tracked mapping it 3 miles, and then I have absolutely no idea what I did.  I guess it's like when you drive or walk the exact same route to work or school or wherever every day, then you arrive and don't even remember how you got there.

I also have no clue what I thought about while I ran (except for the one mile during which some bro running through the city wanted to race me, which I will detail below).  Usually I always have something on my mind (aka something that is stressing me out).  So I am very glad that I was able to just run and apparently not think about anything and not feel like I'm killing myself and enjoy it!

I might be completely losing my mind because also yesterday on my way home from work I got on the wrong train.  I wasn’t paying attention and just got on the first one that came to the station I was waiting at and got on.  Luckily, instead of just immersing myself in my phone, I was looking around and realized I was on an orange line train.  But it’s OK, because I was able to get off at the next stop and transfer to a purple line train as if it never happened.  And now I can say I’ve rode the orange line.

Anyways, I ran 40 minutes at a comfortable pace, so I imagine the run was 5 miles.  One thing I remember thinking right when I finished the run is how easy it felt!  I think I mentioned this last week, but I have recently been feeling like these normal 5-6 mile runs are a piece of cake!  It feels good to not feel like running is just painful the whole time and like it’s just a chore that I have to go out and do because I have to train for this marathon.

Actually, if I had to guess, I think it might have been a little faster than 8 minute pace.  Why?  Because the very first thing I remember about this run is that I turned onto Armitage and ended up running right behind a guy also out for his evening run.  I was just cruising along listening to my music and we were basically going the same pace, but apparently he wanted to race.  He obviously realized I was running behind him for a minute or two because he kept kind of indiscreetly looking over his shoulder and speeding up…not a lot, but enough to make it clear that he didn’t want to let me pass him, probably because he doesn’t want to get passed by a girl.  I just stayed behind him until that street ran into a dead end and then I decided to turn the opposite direction that he did.  So that’s why maybe my run had about a mile of slightly increased pace than normal.

Something that made today awesome from the crack of dawn:

Grace and I had bought the same outfit from The Limited when we went shopping together for our real job work clothes a few years ago.  She texted me this morning with a picture of her wearing it and said “twin day?”  Of course I agreed because (a) I love matching outfits (even if we are across the country) and (b) that meant I didn’t have to decide what to wear, which cut out a solid few minutes of my morning preparation.  Couple that and the fact that I had already prepared a few lunches for the week yesterday, and boom! - extra time to have breakfast at home instead of at work.

Do you ever "race" with the random strangers running near you?

Do you have any little ways to save time in the morning?

And since my Would You Rather question was kind of obvious (hopefully) and it is such an awesome game, here's another one:

Would you rather be chased by bees or dogs?