Monthly Archives: August 2011

Bullritos & Boston Legal

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Horrible Run

Let’s get the whole “runner” portion of this out of the way. I had a really awful 2 (yes, 2) mile run this morning. Training said 2, I was going to make it 4, but my legs just were not having it today. They just felt heavy. In fact, that’s how all of my runs have felt lately. Any suggestions or ideas as to why?

Bullritos

After dragging Sean to Target to look at rugs for our dining room which we did not (much to my dismay) end up purchasing, and after we made a quick trip to Home Depot to look at plants for our front yard which we did not (much to Sean’s  dismay) end up buying, we popped into Bullritos for dinner. Currently there’s 14 locations around the U.S., so if there’s one close to you, you should be going.

I want to tell you that it’s unique, but that’s just because I really like it there. In reality, it’s a mix of Which Wich and Chipotle.

In the same respect as Which Wich, you grab a bag and mark off all of your choices.

BUT unlike Which Wich (which is sandwiches if you’ve never been) it’s the same basis as Chipotle with burritos, bowls, etc.

I got an absolutely delectable salad bowl filled with tons of delicious toppings. There’s not much better to me then a Mexican salad with fresh grilled chicken, fresh pico and salsa, black beans, jalapenos, cheese, grilled peppers and onions, roasted corn and chile lime rice. DELICIOUS.

How good does that look!? And try as I might, I can never seem to recreate the same flavors at home. Delicious. Go there.

Boston Legal

I realize that Sean and I are way behind the times when it comes to Boston Legal. However, now we are on board and now we are hooked.

This show is absolutely hysterical if you’ve never seen it. William Shatner and James Spader are quite the combo, and they tackle some pretty serious moral issues while still adding in touches of comedy.

Besides, there’s not much better than seeing William Shatner turn in all seriousness and say…

What’s your favorite TV show right now? We get really caught up in one show at a time. Right now, Boston Legal.

Seriously, any ideas as to why my legs have been so heavy feeling lately?

7 Links

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A million and a half years ago one of my all-time favorites, the lovely Melissa tagged me to do the 7 links post. Since I am the world’s biggest procrastinator, I am just now getting around to doing this :)

Most Beautiful

It’s bad that I’m already stumped, huh? Honestly, I spend so much time being sarcastic and light-hearted in my posts, that this is a tough one for me (thought if you know me IRL [I've been waiting for a chance to drop the "in real life" acronym, I feel like a real social media person now] you know I write the way I talk)… However, as simple as this post is, I really enjoy going back to because it has my favorite wedding pictures in it. Also, I really enjoyed writing this post, even though I wrote it as a guest post for Tara.

Most Popular

This is a little hard because I recently switched from Blogger to self-hosting so I have two different sets of “popular” posts. However for reasons that I really can not understand, my 2011 New Year’s Resolution post has the most page views.

Most Controversial

I try very hard to stay away from controversy on my blog because I don’t really care to end up in fights with anyone and I never ever want to hurt anyone’s feelings, but this post seemed to have a lot of mixed reactions, even though I think it was taken out of context from what I meant…

Most Helpful

Sigh, I think all of my “helpful” posts go to guest posts for others because I tend to just ramble on and on about the random bits and pieces of my life. (that being said, maybe I should try to be more “helpful”?)… however (and yes, I realize it’s a guest post) I really liked this one that I wrote for Vanessa.

Surprise Success

I got a lot of hits off this post (probably because I was posted on their facebook page), but when I logged in and looked at my site stats for the day, I was shocked and a little pleased :)

Not Enough Attention

Like I’m sure just about everyone else has said, I’m thrilled that anyone even reads my blog, much less comments on it or enjoys it. But a lot of emotion went into this post, and I think that deep down a lot of people can relate on some level to it, maybe not just for running but for anything that motivates them. Like I said up a few topics, I try very hard to keep my blog light-hearted, but this post came with a heavy set of emotions.

NOW IT’S YOUR TURN

I’m supposed to tag 5 people. Here you go and you’re welcome ;-)

1. Britt from FitChickBritt

2. Tara from TexasRunnerGirl

3. Margot at The Faster Bunny (who is a ROCKSTAR by the way and just finished HOOD TO COAST!)

4. Heidi from The Sweet Life

5. Kim from to dream the KIMpossible dream

 

You tell me your favorite post you’ve written. My favorite thus far was my “I Run…” post and then also my post from the Funfest Run by the Bay Race Recap (which you can find under the race tab, if interested)… I loved that race.

Sheer Brilliance and The Great Reveal

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Sheer Brilliance

I have a knack for making really good decisions. Yesterday, for instance, I decided that I would run 10 miles today. I made this decision based on the knowledge that I did not want to run 7 extra miles after yesterday’s 5k, I wanted to cross-train. So I hit the gym around 2pm for 30 minutes on the elliptical with the help of, well, The Help.

What I did not factor in, however, was that we were going to a wedding shower last night that was from “7-10″. C’mon. Seriously. Who really believes these things will end at the exact minute that they say they’re going to? And who really believes that once surrounded by friends you will actually want to leave right when the invite says it’s ending?

Needless to say, we got home around midnight. Given the option of going to bed or forcing Sean to cuddle with me on the couch while I “watched Criminal Minds” (read: slept), I naturally chose the latter. When my alarm went off this morning, I naturally turned it off, grabbed Louie (seriously, how cute is he?!), and snuggled farther under the covers. I finally made it out of bed around 8, where I promptly made coffee, breakfast, and started re-doing my marathon training plan.

Are you wondering where the 10 miles is? Me too. At that point it was going to be 8 miles, not 10. I talked to Britt for a bit about SA (with the big decision of half vs. full marathon… it’s looking like half right now) before I finally decided I needed to get out there and run 6 miles.

Are you wondering what happened to the 8? Me too. Let me give you my reasons:

1. I have no Garmin til Monday

2. It was 100 degrees already

3. Did I mention it was 100 degrees outside?!

4. I redid my marathon plan starting 18 weeks out. Since I’m 20 weeks out – not 18 – I decided I’d do 6 this week, 7 next week and then we’d start with the “long” runs again. Oh and I’m a big wuss (see #’s 2&3).

So I drove over to this little section of back roads (OK Tara :), do you know where I ran today?), parked in a super shady looking parking lot (and by shady I don’t mean covered by trees), and set out on an hour run. This would come out to a little over 6 miles if I was trekking along at my normal 9:30ish pace (I did, and it was awful), and I deemed it 6 miles based on 10 minute miles. I like underestimating mileage, and tend to round down not up.

It took my little legs 5 miles (or about 50 minutes) to realize I wasn’t kidding when I said we were running for an hour. They gave in for a half mile until about 55 minutes where they let me know we were going to pass out or throw up if we didn’t quit. We went to an hour and then I thought about dry heaving while I walked back to my car. The good news is that I made it one piece and all my food stayed in my stomach. You’re welcome for those astounding visuals, by the way.

Since I came dangerously close to dying today, I’m soothing my legs with this:

The Great Reveal

I keep telling you guys that things are changing. And I’ll warn you now, there’s no pictures in the next few paragraphs :)

I’m not sure how much you guys really know about me and I am far too lazy right now to go back through old posts to see how much information I’ve given out on my college experience. Suffice it to say, I graduated with a degree in Mass Communication and a focus on Print Journalism. I was going to be a writer. It’s all I ever wanted to do, for as far back as I can remember. Except, when I graduated in 2008, there were no writing jobs.

It took me almost 3 months after graduating to find a job, and when I did it was as a “marketing assistant” at a small law firm. This quickly turned into paralegal work and for two and a half years I worked diligently at my job. I found one of my best friends at this firm, and made some other very good friendships. But I wasn’t happy.

I applied for jobs here and there, but aside from taking unpaid internships or hourly positions (both of which were not an option), writing seemed to be on the outs. When I started blogging, I found a good outlet to let my inner writer out. Until now.

Starting tomorrow, I will hold the position of writer/editor at a new job. For someone who really hates to take risks and hates change, I’m taking a huge leap of faith right now. But I’m excited, I’m terrified, and I’m moving forward. And the thing is, I truly believe that running has given me the confidence to push forward in other areas of my life, and take chances I never thought I’d take.

 

Has running helped you in other areas of your life?

Are you working your dream job right now? I fully 100% believe that you need to do what makes you happy. A career, in my opinion, isn’t just an ends to a mean. If you’re going to be doing something for the rest of your life, I think you need to be happy. You only get one life.

Houston Young Lawyer’s Association 5k Race Recap

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This morning Luke and I ran the Houston Young Lawyer’s Association 5k. It started like most race mornings do with a little bit of this:

We got there early because I am paranoid about getting to races late, so we picked up our chips and then just hung out for 30 minutes. My parents ended up meeting us there too – it was fun to have the whole family there! The race ended up starting a little after 7:30am and was an out and back course in downtown Houston.

Luke and I started off together; in fact he was a couple steps ahead of me for the first half. There was a lady with a stroller who I could not get around, which was a little frustrating. I really think all these longer, slower runs I’ve been doing are hurting my 5k’s, I thought I was going to die a mile and a half into it. I also didn’t have my Garmin so I had no clue how fast or slow I was running… not sure if that was good or bad for me.

The course was pretty hilly for a Houston course, which neither of us were prepared for… definitely need to start incorporating more hill work into my running schedule. My one big complaint was that they only had two water stations set up and they were directly across from each other. You hit the first one right before the turn around and the second one right after the turnaround.

Mentally I started leaving the race right after the second mile. It was humid and I was ready to be done running. I kept racing to different points, telling myself just to go a little bit further. I lost Luke somewhere after the turnaround too, he was right next to me for a while and then I was running by myself. When I finally crossed the finish line I thought I had hit pretty close to my last PR – it looked like it was about 23:18. Official results say 23:41. Boo.

Luke came across pretty shortly after that – he finished in 24:24 official time. :) So proud!

We both ended up placing first in our age groups (Luke was the only one in his age group – haha!), and I’m glad that he had something like that happen to keep him motivated to run.

Afterwards my parents took us to breakfast. We settled on Barnaby’s Cafe, which is the cutest little cafe in River Oaks. If you’ve never been, I highly recommend it. My dad kept saying that it was the best breakfast he’d had in a long time.

How cute are the front of the menus? I ended up getting the green eggs – which was scrambled egg whites (I subbed egg whites for the eggs) with spinach and artichokes, chicken apple sausage, breakfast potatoes, and wheat toast. I only had half and it looked like I hadn’t had any, that’s how much food there was. And it was all incredible.

Overall: The race was a lot smaller then I thought it would be, but I’m never opposed to small races, it means I have the chance to place :) . It was all set up pretty well, and Sean was happy because there were kegs in the park afterward. The course itself was all right – we were running up and down streets so it wasn’t really scenic, plus there were a few small hills. I thought the water stations could have been spaced out a little more, but it was only 3 miles… I’m so excited that my brother ran with me, I’ve been trying to force someone in my family to get into running! Oh and two breakfasts in one day is never a bad thing in my book :)

Those of you that raced this weekend – how’d you do?!

Those of you with long runs – tell me ’bout it! I need some motivation to do one tomorrow :)

Kilburn’s and the return of St. Arnold’s Oktoberfest

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Last night… no no, wait… yesterday in the late afternoon Sean and I decided to finally cash in on some buy 1 get 1 free drink coupons I had for Kilburn’s, which is a little tavern and grille close to our house. It’s a fairly small tavern that has a very comfortable and “Old English Tavern” vibe to it. Sean and I were easily the youngest people there and it seemed like a lot of the patrons were regulars.

We started off by splitting an order of chips and salsa. I’ve decided that I think blue corn tortilla chips taste better than the white ones. I don’t know why – I think they’re thicker. Delicious. The salsa was pretty good – not outstanding – but still good. It wasn’t spicy, which I think is why neither of us thought it was great (we like our salsa to have some kick to it!).

When I went to order my beer – St. Arnold’s Summer Pilsner – something magical happened. Our bartender told me that the Pilsner was off the menu now and that OKTOBERFEST had returned! I was a very happy person after that. You see, last year when Oktoberfest came out, we picked up a 6 pack of it having never tried it before… It was the only 6 pack we got because it sold out ridiculously fast.

For eats I ordered the grilled chicken sandwich with homemade french fries. The sandwich itself was all right for bar food. The bread was a little overwhelming – there was so much of it! I only had half the sandwich and the fries. The fries stole the show in my opinion, they were awesome.

Sean went with the pulled pork sandwich with fries. He said it was pretty good. That’s about it. He’s a stellar food reviewer.

The verdict: their portions are HUGE. Even our bartender said that it was better to split a meal. He also told us that the next time we come back to get the fish and chips (and split it).

All in all, we had an enjoyable time and will be returning. I love local restaurants and bars, and this was no exception.

 

 

I run…

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I run to feel strong.

I run for confidence.

I run for toned legs ;-) .

I run to get rid of my problems.

I run to face my fears.

I run to conquer them.

I run to feel good about myself.

I run to be healthy.

I run to leave behind my insecurities.

I run for shorts and skinny jeans.

I run to beat sadness.

I run for endorphins.

I run for cupcakes and frozen yogurt.

I run because it’s hard.

I run because not everyone can do it, and I used to be one of those people.

I run to compete.

I run one step at a time.

I run because I want to honor my body.

I run to prove myself.

I run because every day is a gift.

I run to not take life for granted.

I run because it’s painful at a times and gratifying at others.

I run because I can.

I run to be me.

Why do you run?

If you don’t run, what do you do that makes you feel strong, healthy, and confident?

Racing and Running

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RACING

I made a commitment on New Year’s to run a 5k a month. Since I’ve progressively gotten more serious about running since then, I’ve changed it to a race a month. After last months disappointing PR, I’ve been hesitant to sign up for a race this month. It’s not that I haven’t wanted to or that I haven’t researched – I have. But quite honestly, I’m scared. I don’t want it to go like last time. I want to PR and I want to PR from running hard and fast the whole time, not from taking short walk breaks.

Now if you remember, someone got bit by the running bug!

Which is the exact reason I now have an August race, because guess who wants to run a 5k :)

This weekend, little brother and I will be running the Houston Young Lawyer’s Foundation 5-K Fun Run. (I know a few of you are running the Lake Houston one, and I wanted to run that one because yall were, but I also wasn’t sure if LB would have to work or not so I picked the one closer to my house :(… next time).

Hopefully this will be what I need to snap out of my race-running funk.

RUNNING

This morning I woke up early and set out for a 4 mile run. The catch? I don’t have my Garmin right now. The start/stop button has been stuck for a while, and I finally packaged it up and sent it in to get fixed. The thought of running on the treadmill made me cringe, so I decided to take my Nike+ and my regular watch and run for 40 minutes. I generally run anywhere from 8:45-9:15 minute miles when I’m running shorter distances (2-6 miles) outside [and not racing], so I figured 40 minutes would get me a little over 4 miles.  I had an awesome run. I felt strong and fast the whole time and I ran in a new-to-me neighborhood that made the run more exciting then looping through my own neighborhood for the billionth time.

I’ve gotta tell ya, running without my Garmin was so… refreshing. Not checking my pace or mileage every 5 minutes was a nice switch. I think maybe once a week I’ll change my mileage goals into time goals and leave it at home. I can pretty accurately guage how fast I’m running, so running without it beeping every mile might be nice…

Do you ever leave technology at home during you runs?!

Trying New Things

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So, I was recomitting last week, if you remember.

Well, it was a little difficult. Lunch on Friday at Chuy’s put a big dent in the whole recommiting thing, especially because I can’t – no matter how hard I try – stop eating those stupid chips. There may or may not have been tres leches involved as well. I can’t really remember.

Saturday I slept in (I don’t know what my deal is on the weekends these past two weeks – I haven’t been up before 8 which is really out of character for me) and that’s when I tackled my dresser and got rid of half my clothes. The drawers are pretty empty now, which makes me breathe a little easier.

And this is only the beginning of all the clothes I’ve gotten rid of. Cleaning out is AWESOME.

We went over to Sean’s parents house to watch the Texans/Saints game. I took zero pictures because I suck. Suffice it to say – I ate the entire time we were there. So I re-started over yesterday :) (nevermind that I didn’t work out yesterday - I did eat pretty well all day).

Who watches True Blood? Am I alone, or is Eric super annoying now that he’s “nice”? Not a fan. I’m ready for Boardwalk Empire to start again.

Anyway, back to being back on track… I did hot Suntouch yoga this morning at some ungodly hour and it was AWESOME! I’ve decided that I’m going once a week (Mondays) to start off my week detoxing and starting “fresh”. Seriously amazing. Lovelovelove.

I also went to an hour long cycle/muscle blast class at the gym which I really wish I could always go to but don’t really see that being possible. I haven’t been to a cycling class in a while, so this class was perfect because it was 30 minutes of spin and then 30 minutes of weights. Which means I have already knocked out one of two strength sessions this week and it’s only Monday. Which also means this week has started off the right way :)

Oh and in case you randomly feel like doing an “easier” hills workout – this is a good one.

5 mile hill workout

1 mile: jog at an easier pace, incline 1%

3/4 mile: jog at an easier pace, incline 2%

1/2 mile: jog at an easier pace, incline 3%

1/2 mile: jog at an easier pace, incline 4%

1/2 mile: jog at an easier pace, incline 3%

3/4 mile: jog at an easier pace, incline 2%

1 mile: jog at an easier pace, incline 1%

I made it 6 miles by keeping it at 1% the last mile and upping the pace 1% every minute. It was a good 6 miles. And I don’t remember where I got that hill work from, but I will link to it when I find it.

Hills – love ‘em or hate ‘em? I actually don’t mind them. They’re hard for sure, but I am always really satisfied when they’re over. Same thing with sprints.

 

Things are a-changin’!

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First things first, right? You need to hop, skip and jump your way over to read my post on Texas Runner Girl’s blog today :) It features my favorite person.

This upcoming week is a big one for me (and the next one will be even bigger)! I’m excited and nervous, so to combat that, I’ve decided now is the perfect time to really give my house a good deep clean and clean out.

So what better way to start the day then by sleeping in and making breakfast?

Oh right, with your long run. Well that didn’t happen and this did:

I have decided that pears pan-fried with cinnamon paired (ha, no pun intended there, I am unintentionally hilarious though) with scrambled eggs, mozarella, and turkey bacon on whole wheat sandwich thins is an amazing combination.

Then I decided that my closet, master bathroom, and bedroom were getting a good fine tuning. But since I can do nothing without a good list, I made that happen first.

And then I proceeded to empty out 1/2 of my clothes. I’m planning on donating some and taking the rest to a resale shop. My closet, bathroom and bedroom are spotless (minus the pile of clothes hanging out on my bed).

I’m trying really hard to feel bad about skipping my long run today, but I did 6 (unplanned) miles of serious hillwork yesterday, my legs are kind of aching, and I’m currently sipping on a glass of red wine while watching Boston Legal.

That last sentence was false. I actually do feel really bad about skipping my long run and I’m drinking a glass of wine so that I can’t go run it because I know that it would do more harm than good because I have a slight twinge in my shin and I know in my head that it’s not worth chancing it, but the less sane part of me is craving 14 miles of awesomeness.

Think I made the right choice? Injury trumps swallowing my pride, huh?

Tell me ’bout your long runs! I want to live vicariously through you guys this weekend!

 

training sucks.

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When I first decided to train for a marathon (or two…) I was filled with such happiness it was unbearable.

I am WELL AWARE I’ve already used this picture this week. It’s just so fitting!

As the weeks have worn on, I’ve ebbed and flowed with marathon training but I’ve hit every.single.scheduled.run.

And then I got to thinking… SmartCoach has me hitting a ton of 20 mile runs. This is something Britt and I discussed when we were initially talking about running both Rock ‘N Roll SA and Houston, but I didn’t really give it much thought at the time.

I ran my first 20 miler (on the treadmill no less) without a hitch. It went swimmingly well. This weekend I’m supposed to have my second, and in 2 weeks after that, my third.

I don’t think so. Let’s be realistic here. So the time has come to tweak that little plan of mine.

When I initially chose SmartCoach, I chose it because it had 3 day run weeks and I like taking a break in between my running days. And I think in theory I understand how running ten million 20 milers could be beneficial. But in reality, I don’t get paid to run, I do work 40+ hours a week, and I am the one in our house that cooks, cleans, does the laundry, does the grocery shopping, and tries to have some semblance of a life outside of that.

Running is something I enjoy. Running TEN 20 milers will make me not enjoy running.

So now I’m going to try my hand at crafting my own training plan. Wish me luck!

 

Do you stick to a rigid training plan or do you tweak? I really like having a plan in place, but I also like to be flexible enough to know when I may need to change things up – both for better running and for my own sanity.