Friday Favorites!!

During all of my marathon training cycles I’ve always taken the day after a speed workout easy² and as flat as possible.  Our coach gave us a challenge run to do the day after our speed workout and this was definitely new and a big challenge to me.  My legs were burning on a new level.  Learning to climb hills with tired legs is going to help a lot during races.  It was easy as far as pace goes and running on the dirt is great for recovery but at one point I looked down to see if I had somehow put on ankle weights without realizing it because of the hills.

Just wearing the same outfit (shorts, long sleeve and vest) that I would wear back in February.  Not sure where summer is hanging out but hopefully it will come.

The first 1.5ish miles were all climbing!

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10 miles total with Jenn and Emily!

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This run required some sitting down on the curb before getting into the car when we finished because my legs were so tired.

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The kids woke up and then Brooke went to school.  I took these two to core day at Burn.  As the training picks up with running it’s tricky to try to fit this in BUT I know I need it and on core day I realize especially how much I need it.

Knox wanted to photo bomb and I think he did an excellent job with it.

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Later on in the day Knox made us some popcorn and declared that he is for sure the best microwave popcorn maker ever.  I agree.

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After school I took Brooke out to celebrate her last day of school (I did this with Knox last week on his last day… they ended at different times).

I told her we could go anywhere and she chose Pretzel Bites and looking at the jewelry store.

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She also requested the photo booth so that was a nice flashback to 1998 for me.

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Skye happily played in the puddles.

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Excited for a weekend together!

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Time for a few of my favorite things this week and I would love to hear yours!

*Kristin sent me the link to this Recovery Salad from Shalane Flanagan and Elyse Kopecky.  It is amazing and full of so many nutrients.  I’m going to have to make a big batch of this often to eat throughout the week.  I added rotisserie chicken and used goat cheese instead of feta (that’s what Kristin did and I copied her:).

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*This stuff.  I’ve used Huma gels during my runs for a while now and this was my first time trying the recovery smoothie.  I think it is really good and perfect for those runs where I drive to meet people to run and can eat this on the way home.  I prefer making something at home but some days there just isn’t time for that and I need to get in those carbs and protein asap!

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*Oh and bagels are back in my life before runs.  I’ve needed a little break from UCAN (and will use it once marathon training starts because I think it is the best for my performance) so a plain bagel with a banana or Skye’s apple sauce packet has been the way to go before a longer workout.

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*I’ve had a few people ask about this dress and I love it so much… it’s basically a long comfy t-shirt.   I also get a lot of questions about my sunglasses and they are HERE!

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*Steph Bruce is definitely one of my top three favorite elite runners right now.  I love when she has a new episode, I get so excited.  Loved seeing how she recovers after a run.

*I love that these amazing women are sharing their stories to create a change!

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Anything you are looking forward to this weekend?

Any favorites from the week?

Which are harder for you… hills or speed?

Best new to you recipe that you have tried recently?

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29 comments

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Speed is definitely harder, and I don’t do it very often. I plan on starting up with a training group in about a month or so, as I want to improve my marathon time and I start training in July for an October marathon.

This weekend will be a busy one (holiday weekend at a tourist attraction=CRAZY!), but our friends are coming in for a few days, I am almost done with pet sitting and can sleep in my own bed, and I have an 8k on Memorial day!

Oh, and it’s like 92 today, 94 tomorrow, and this continues until next Friday when we finally get a chance for rain. Summer is definitely here in Tennessee. The poor husky I am caring for doesn’t like the heat………..we will be waiting until 8 or so to go walking at night!

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Oh I am so excited that you are starting up with a training group soon! So excited about this Loribeth and your marathon in October. Good luck at your 8k and I want to hear all about it. Oh you guys are having summer in full effect!

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Summer is in Florida if you’re looking for it. Full effect. Triple digits and humidity. 70’s and 99% humidity at 5am! Come join us! ?

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Bahaha valid point… I just need to make my way over to Florida so I can wear a tank top again (and DIE.. you are my hero for running in that humidity)! Have a fabulous day Donna!

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I made cocoa krispies peanut butter treats. Oh my goodness- life changing lol. Sweets are my jam ?

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Ummmm I need to make those today. That sounds like heaven right now! Have a beautiful day Kimberly:)

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Speed definitely harder. Give me hills all day everyday. I even find that I do better on routes/courses that have rolling hills versus mostly flat.

Looking forward to the long holiday weekend! Nothing specific planned but hopefully able to catch up on life. :)

I LOVE Stephanie Bruce too! She is so down to earth and I love how much success she is having at her age and after two babies.

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Give me some of your hill strength Janelle, that is awesome… I rarely do speed work on courses with rolling hills. That is awesome Janelle. Enjoy the long weekend and catching up. It’s amazing to see her do what she is doing right now… she inspires us all. Have a fabulous day Janelle!

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Happy Friday!! Going to a friend’s wedding this weekend and very excited for them :)

Stephanie Bruce is one of my favorites too! I met her before the NYC Marathon, I was at a Hoka event that she was speaking at and I got to meet her after. She was so sweet and signed a card for me telling me to keep chasing my dreams- I keep that in my training journal so I can see it after logging workouts!

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Oh I am so happy that you met her… she sounds incredible. I would keep that forever too. Enjoy your friend’s wedding and congrats to them. Have a beautiful rest of your day Mariah!

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Looks so fun for Brooke’s last day of school! I used to do those photo booths with my friends all the time;) Nice throwback. Do her and Knox attend diff schools now?

Does Andrew have the whole weekend off? I bet you are excited to get some time together, it can be hard transitioning to a new schedule. My fiancé and I used to meet every morning before work at Starbucks to have coffee and chat and then he got a job that’s a 1.5 hour commute so we couldn’t anymore. It was a hard transition finding our new normal when we were used to seeing each other daily!

I’m looking forward to a 3-day weekend and my birthday weekend! Woohooo! My birthday is on Memorial Day this year. My best friends birthday is the day before mine so we’re doing a cookout at our other close friends house who has a pool to celebrate both our birthdays with all our families:) And then Monday me and my fiancé are going to one of our favorite little beach towns to spend the day:) I’m really excited. I’ve never embraced birthdays even though I love spoiling others on theirs so I decided this year bring it on! I am going to embrace feeling loved.

Oh, and I’m hoping to try out my new treadmill and then I can finally send you a pic of it setup! ahah :)

I hope you have a lovely weekend and enjoy time together as a family!

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Happy Birthday on Monday Eleanor. That cookout and the beach town sound like the absolute best way to celebrate. Enjoy the day:) They are in the same school but Kindergarten got out earlier this year! He does have the full weekend off, hallelujah. Send me that picture. Thanks so much Eleanor!

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Just ordered those Huma Recovery packs. I love the gels for running. Excited to try these, thank you for posting about them.

So excited for a 3 day weekend! Starting it a bit early today and leaving work early to watch my nephew compete in his State track meet.

Hope you have a great weekend!

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YAY!!! I hope you love them Corrinne! Enjoy every second of your three days off and good luck to your nephew!

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I love Steph Bruce too! She is also one of my favorite elites to follow. Thank you for sharing her recovery day with us… lots of good tips!
Speed is hard for me for sure! But, I have found that if I do speed work on the track, that really helps me. I know I just need to go once around or twice around and then I get to take a break… takes all the thinking out of it ;) We live in an area with good hills, so I feel like I’m sort of running hills a lot. I would like to get out and do some hills on a good trail though.
This weekend I am hoping for some warmer temps! This week has felt like February again (at least February in SoCal). Lots of rain, cloudy cool days… not what you want heading into Memorial weekend. Our oldest son is graduating from high school next week, so we will be doing more yard and patio clean up to get ready for his party. But then Monday will be the annual Memorial day party at our neighborhood pool. Fingers crossed that it will be warm enough!
Have a great Friday and weekend!

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Yessss… that is how I think on the track too and I get to zone into my pace and not think about anything else. I hope it warms up for you guys too. GRADUATION… this is huge Wendy! You guys have a lot going on. Enjoy the party! Thanks so so much Wendy!

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Hooray for the last day of school!
I’ve been reading about the Nike runners and their pregnancy/maternity penalties, too, and stunned that they suffer so many financial consequences and penalties. They are even more impressive for speaking out about it.
I’m looking forward to getting off work early :) and just having a beautiful weekend of nice weather. My gym does a Memorial Day tribute workout on Monday, which is tough and emotional.
Both hills and speed are tough for me at this point, though I’m getting better at going faster down hills ~hahaha~ I think I struggle with hills more than speed, though. Yesterday’s run was short, but I realized the pace is what I would need for a full marathon to BQ again….that requires a little work!
Hope it warms up for you this weekend!

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I had no idea that Nike was doing that to them all. It’s terrible and not right! That workout sounds like such an incredible experience at your gym, I love that they do that. YOU CAN DO IT COREY… I’ve been there too! At the start of a training cycle my marathon pace can only be held for a short amount of time but as the weeks go on, the better it feels and the longer we can sustain it. Have a beautiful weekend.

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Very interesting to see your watch with your cadence at 161. I always read that optimal running cadence is 180. I can try all day long but somehow cannot move my feet at anything beyond 150, maybe 160 if i am going down a giant hill.

Have a great weekend!

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Hi Jen. I studied up on cadence a while back. Your cadence will vary by pace and individual. For instance, I’ll be in the 150-160 range running 9-10 minute per mile training runs but more like 180 at less than 7 minute pace in a 5K race. A lot of other things come into play like ground contact time, stride length, vertical oscillation, etc…

I’m getting a running assessment done in early June and going though some PT right now to work on activating my glutes more. I’ll talk to the PT a bit about cadence too and see what they say.

I actually started playing around with some running gait analysis of my own. Most cell phones will take video at 240fps these days and there is a free version of Coach’s Eye in the Android App store for anyone to play with. And there is a free version of Hudl Technique in the iOS store. You can compare yourself to elite runners and search youtube for all sorts of gait analysis videos. Fun to play around with.

Have fun.

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This weekend I am looking forward to finally running outside after 12 weeks of rehab!! ??? I am finally healed up of my femoral stress fracture and got the green light to start running outside… I’m so happy I could cry! I have been running on the AlterG for a few weeks now, with two 1-hr sessions this week, but it just doesn’t compare to being outside. I have to start out with 3 miles, so we’ll see how it goes, but I feel SO ready! I am really looking forward to trying out some speed soon! ?
I am also really looking forward to my parents’ visit this coming week! We are celebrating my graduation – I finished the MSW program that I have been in for the last 3 years ? So lots of exciting things are happening right now!

Have an awesome weekend, Janae! Keep kicking booty!

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Hey Janae!
Well, we decided last minute, this morning, to go to the beach for part of the holiday weekend. LIfe is short, and we’ve all been grumpy and tired lately, so we’re off to the beach to eat good food, soak up some sun (and hopefully work on evening out this crazy runner’s tan I’ve developed!!!), relax, and (for me) run! We’re all excited!

Friday Favorites–I shopped the J. Crew sale a couple of days ago. My summer jam seems to be cut off jean shorts and tank tops! I’m always on the lookout for a pretty sundress though, too! I got this one to take to Key West in July: https://www.adelynrae.com/collections/dresses/products/cailin-textured-stripe-dress?variant=21723260256340

I love short speed intervals; the hardest speedwork for me is longer intervals, like 1000s or mile repeats. I think it’s way more of a mind thing than a body thing though!!! Working on that!

Best new recipe:
https://fountainavenuekitchen.com/parmesan-crusted-salmon/

Yum :) ENJOY your LONG weekend!!!!!

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HILLS! Probably because I live where it’s flat and never do them. But when I have done them, I’ve found that adding high knees into HIIT or strength-training makes a HUGE difference in my being able to clamber up a hill.

I am so glad you loved the salad! And what a great idea to throw in some chicken. I’m planning on making it this weekend and might have to try that!

This weekend–visiting my mom and dad, and then going to a friend’s for a Memorial Day barbecue! My favorite from the week was something a couple kindergartners said–we were doing a project as a class, and I was drawing gummy bears and said, “You know, my gummy bears don’t look perfect, and that’s just how I draw them.” A boy said, “You’re doing your best!” and a girl added, “You’re trying your hardest and that’s what matters. Right?” Amazing. Gummy bears will always make me smile now (I mean, they already did. But now in an extra-special way).

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New favorite recipe:

https://iowagirleats.com/2016/08/17/potsticker-noodle-bowls/

SO GOOD. And I bet would be fine with ground chicken or ground turkey

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Favourites this week include THIS PODCAST: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/ben-newman-challenge-yourself-one-day-at-a-time-r4r-122/id1225735334?i=1000439197521
I am loving Tina’s mental training emphasis and this episode with Ben Newman is amazing and has so so many great tips! I’m feeling super pumped/motivated/excited to start setting some big goals and actually set out to accomplish them by taking one day at a time to challenge myself. Definitely worth a listen. But do it with a notebook near by! I need to listen again and take some intense notes.

Also this recipe: https://whatsgabycooking.com/homemade-pizookie/
Because getting through 2 hours of the Bachelorette requires snacks. Have a great weekend!

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I am looking forward to sun, blue sky, and warmer temperatures this weekend. And trying out my new Garmin.

Speed is harder for me – hills are an almost daily occurrence (I have to drive to find flat-ish trails). And when I do speed, I do mile repeats or tempo runs (they count as speed in my old bones book). Or my favorite hill/sprint loop – sprint all the hills (6, ranging between 0.1 miles and 0.3 miles), jog (no walking allowed) in between…does that count as double speed? (Ha, ha.)

Best new recipe: Everyday Cinnamon Rolls –>https://ourbestbites.com/everyday-cinnamon-rolls/

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I’m looking forward to relaxing this weekend because the last week of school has been SO busy.
I am better at hills than speed.
My new favorite dinner recipe is homemade meatballs inside Rhodes Rolls with provolone cheese and marinara sauce. Such good mini meatball subs! Have a good weekend.

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Last day of school?!? Jealous! We’re in until June 20th…hooray for snow days in Maine.

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I loved that NYtimes video, thanks for sharing! The fact that maternity leave isn’t the standard across industries is madening to me. Mother’s, children and families deserve better!

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