Definitely needed to sit on my front porch for a few minutes after yesterday’s run.
It’s been a little over a month since CIM and I decided to go with Emilee and the Runner’s Corner group to do their workout (a lot of them are training for Boston) yesterday.
Those four little triangles below have a lot of memories ha… So many workouts were done here last year.
For months and months last year I got used to my workouts getting faster and faster. That’s what happens with training, we put in the work and while not every workout gets faster, a lot of them do! You get a nice little high when you see that your times that day were faster than they were a few weeks ago.
Yesterday I did a total of 7 miles and for my workout portion I did one normal mile in what was my goal marathon pace followed by a recovery and then one MTC mile (the one that is mostly downhill). Six weeks ago I did 10 MTC miles on average 13 seconds faster per mile than the one mile that I did yesterday… also, yesterday felt MUCH harder than 6 weeks ago. I couldn’t believe it when I finished how I couldn’t keep the pace I recently did for 10 intervals for 1 interval. After thinking about it for a few more miles of easy running, GOING BACKWARDS IS NORMAL! These training cycles build upon each other IF we give our bodies breaks and go backwards for a little while before they build up to be even stronger than they were before. It’s part of the process, it happens to all of us and even the elites have these exact same types of experiences. We can’t always be moving forward in our running/training… there are times of going backwards or being stagnant too and that’s what makes the whole process more challenging and exciting!
A wonderful thing about having a running husband—> when I forget to charge my watch I can just take his. He was excited I set a new record for him with my downhill mile;)
Brooke told me on the drive to school she wishes we could go skiing every single day… I’m pretty excited about how much she loves it already.
How Brooke wanted to pose for the picture:
Skye’s biggest pet-peeve in life… if her socks are on weird at all. The joyful look below is from me fixing the seam across her toes to be perfectly straight.
Skye is really big into reading the same book over and over and over and over again. I have no idea who she gets the desire from to do the exact same thing on repeat until she gets sick of it (okay, me).
Utah got a bit more snow yesterday!
Love those huge snowflakes.
We had leftover soup and mashed potatoes for dinner followed by a granola party. Brooke is clearly not into raisins and almonds…
Me last night (sent to me by Megan D ha):
Back to a few home improvement things. We bought two new ceiling fans to put in our main room but once Andrew took out one of them, we decided (along with help from an IG poll) that we like it better without fans and we will replace them with can lights instead (luckily the other can lights line up perfectly with them).
One last IG post to share today but I think it is really important this time of year when the days are darker and colder to take time to do this things:
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Any funny pet-peeves lately?
-Updating any and all electronics… and then I complain about how slow my computer is working;)
Moving forwards, backwards or kind of plateauing with your running right now?
What time did you go to bed last night?
What’s something small that you like to do to boost your mood?
32 comments
Mariah
A walk outside always helps me boost my mood- sunlight, nature, endorphins! Listening to my favorite music, calling a friend or spreading kindness/cheer to others help too.
The Hungry Runner Girl
It really is amazing what a simple walk does for our mood and I love all of the things you listed. They all help so much! Hope your Thursday is a beautiful one:)
Mary
Hi Janae! Great post on running progress! I’ve been moving backwards, but life is very full right now. I get frustrated that i’m slower, but am grateful I get to get out there!
In terms of mood boosters, I just started in the New Year regular yoga at the end of the day. I do it with my kids who love it and I think it really helps them calm and power down as well. I definitely haven’t done enough for my body (eg, weights, stretching, drinking water etc..) fitness-wise other than running in the past several years. The Yoga helps me with the stretching aspect and just mentally as well. Hopefully I will commit to it!
Have a great day!! Mary
The Hungry Runner Girl
I’m there with you Mary and it’s okay to be moving backwards until we are ready to move forwards. I am so glad you are able to get out there still with so much going on. Okay, I am totally going to copy you and try that with my kids at the end of the day. Thanks for inspiring me! Thanks Mary, you too!
Ali
The soup over potatoes sounds really interesting. Kind of like gravy, I would imagine? Things I do to boost my mood other than run: listening to the She Waits album by the Gray Havens, Church Clap by KB, or Happy by Hokus Pick. All guaranteed to make me chill and/or smile. Have a great day!
The Hungry Runner Girl
You need to try it… it’s so good and it definitely feels like gravy on potatoes but even tastier I think! I need to listen to these albums today, thanks so much Ali and you too!
Christine
Ha! Skye is cute. My youngest (now 10) used to get so mad at her socks. It makes me laugh now. They had to be on the correct way… end of story. Nature definitely helps my mood. A short walk can be life changing. Trying to improve running without going backwards doesn’t work. This is how people get injured. My daughter is a competitive swimmer and they always go backwards. You have to go backwards to go forward. Truth. Have a nice day. Enjoy skiing!!
Becky Przy
I am going backwards with my running. I am taking the next few weeks off and focusing on strength training and shorter HIIT workouts. I am hoping it will make my legs stronger and faster. I love how you make me think of running differently–it’s ok to be slower, take a break, not be running “all the miles”, etc.
I went to bed at 8:20 last night, haha. My husband has been working odd shifts so I have been taking turns sleeping with the kids. We read and she said she was tired, so to bed we went and I wasn’t one bit mad about it;-).
Small things that boost my mood: warm drinks (tea, hot chocolate, coffee), a text message with my sister, snuggling up with my kids on the couch to watch a movie, lighting a new candle, finding good deals, volunteering
Have a fabulous Thursday Janae!
Corey
Kids and socks–funny how the little things can bug the littles :)
A big pet peeve for me right now: when I’m walking my dog, she likes to cross over behind me, so I lift the leash above my head so it’s not behind me anymore…and it gets stuck on the hood of my coat. And I should just put my hood up so it won’t happen, but I fall for it every time.
Moving backward with running right now. I expect it in the winter, when it’s too dark to run during the week. I’ll be happy to welcome the longer evenings again!
I didn’t go to bed until 10-ish last night, though I’m fighting a cold or something and dozed off for a short bit before dinner.
Looking back on some kind of success or positive memory helps me boost my mood sometimes. Or taking a brief moment to appreciate *something* in the present that I can feel grateful about–a hug from one of my kids or that the heat vent just kicked on to make me warm :)
John
I have the same pet peeve as Skye! I HATE seams in my socks!
Well, my Garmin says I am either unproductive or detraining, so I guess I am going backwards! (Probably because my running times are slower than before my hamstring strain and I’ve also been doing mainly indoor workouts lately since I’ve had a nagging head cold for 3 weeks. So, I am not worried about it)
8PM beditme (up at 3:30am). Mood booster = usually some funny videos or music videos on YouTube.
Jessie
My 2.5 y/o is the SAME about socks! And footie jammies. Loses her mind if they’re “wrong”!
Megan D
I went to bed at 11:15. It’s a real good day if I’m in bed at 10:30. Can you call me when you go to bed and suggest I do the same? I need an intervention
Kristin
My pet peeve is that I keep resetting my oven clock, and it’s still slow! Must be running just slow enough that after a couple weeks, it’s a few minutes behind.
I think I’m moving forward again with running–I kept getting bad colds last month, so I had been running a lot and doing really well, so I feel like I’m not where I was in November, but feeling way better than I was 2 weeks ago! I also got some new running shoes, so my feet feel very happy.
I love the 3d sleep soundscapes on the headspace app–they are so soothing and great white noise for falling asleep!
Amy
Hi Janae! I’m definitely going backwards in my running now (so you know I have space for a running start when I start training hard again, no idea if that made sense :)). My knee has been bothering me after speed workouts or even some strength workouts so I decided to just rest for a few weeks.
My pet peeve is when my clothes have stripes but the stripes don’t like up between the front and the back sides! Drives me nuts!
Annie R
Ugh I also hate updating my electronics! (My work computer is so slow right now that the words I’m typing aren’t even showing up in real time and there’s about a half second delay ;))
I’m in the midst of building my running back up post-CIM. It’s still struggle street for me right now though. A question for you: You’ve mentioned in past posts that you’re a fairly anxious person. Has this ever affected your sleeping? I haven’t had regular insomnia since college when my roommate was a snorer, but since Thanksgiving I’ve been really struggling getting to sleep. My doctor has given me medication to help with my anxiety, but I don’t want to become reliant on sleep aids to fall asleep and it’s definitely gotten to that point. Any tips from you or other readers on how to get the heck to sleep when your brain will NOT shut off? It’s impacting my ability to get up and get running in the morning!
To boost my mood I like to read, listen to a podcast, or just get outside and go for a quick walk. I will say shopping usually helps too ;)
Janine
*Skye know the deal…any and all sock issues are a major annoyance!! On the work side of things, a pet peeve is when people fail to replace the water bottle on the cooler/dispenser when it’s empty.
*Because I am starting again from scratch with running, it’s all forward progress for now :o)
*I teach a class on Wednesday nights until 10:00pm, so didn’t make it to bed until 10:38pm. Would have preferred about 90 minutes earlier.
*Top 3 small mood boosters: getting outside, hanging with the cat, and a cup of tea (Republic of Tea’s Peppermint Bark is topping the list right now)
Have an awesome day!
Barb McLaughlin
Hi Janae, Thank you so much for your posts about running LOWS as well as highs. I think they are so helpful for people. Your recent pics from after the CIM I think are important for people to see as well. We are so used to looking at social media and seeing all the good stuff. Thank you for keeping it real and showing people that EVERYONE has difficult/bad runs or days. I love fitness but I don’t run a lot but even those pictures help me! xoxo
Hillary
And can lights are cheaper! Don’t you love a win-win? I feel I moved backwards and am ready for the upswing :) Have a great day!
The Hungry Runner Girl
Seriously, I was so excited to return the ceiling fans $$! So true about the win-win! So excited for you to move forward and your progression and I hope you keep me updated on it all! Thanks Hillary!
Amy @ FitnessMeetsFrosting
I feel ya Skye! When I was little, I hated the seams on my socks so much (I called them “flumpies”). To help get my socks on without a meltdown, my dad would rub my foot in between his hands really fast so my foot would get a little numb, then slide the sock on really fast and fix the flumpies before I would notice LOL.
The Hungry Runner Girl
Oh my goodness, I love these flumpies memories with your dad:). Skye is thankful she isn’t alone with this pet peeve when she is little haha. Have the best day Amy!
Jennifer Smith
Loved your post on running progress. It’s so important to keep moving.
The Hungry Runner Girl
Oh that is so true Jennifer… we just keep moving with running and life! I hope you have a wonderful day:)
Kristine Chew
According to the other half, I passed out on the couch at 8 pm….and didn’t wake up until he had to take the dog out at like 9 pm..at which point I went to bed.
I hear you on running progress. Right now, my goal is just to get out there every day, and I am pretty sure my first attempt at a run I gave myself shin splints. I was mortified because it wasn’t even a hard run hahaha. But I did get out there at 6:30 am in the dark before work, so I will give myself props for that.
I love that you guys have snow. We might get some this week in the city and I am super excited! My pet peeve = when drawers and cabinet doors are left open.
Have a great day Janae!
Erica
Yesterday my mood was bad, my energy was low, and I said out loud 5 times “Fake it till you make it, fake it till you make it……….” It actually did work a bit.
The Hungry Runner Girl
Oh I LOVE that idea Erica and I’m totally going to try that out when I need it. Thanks for sharing with us!
Sarah
Haha Emma is the same way with her socks and also always picks the raisins out of her granola or cereal!
The Hungry Runner Girl
Emma and my girls would get along great together! Hope you have the best day Sarah!
Susan Skelton
Definitely going backwards these days. Menopause has changed me physically & emotionally. I still have to drive 1 1/2 hours every other weekend to my hometown to “assist” with my Mom. Our relationship has always been complicated. She’s not a nice person and was horrible to my Dad. But I go over there to give my brother a break. So running has definitely taking a back seat. All I can do are run/walk intervals these days. But I continue to try to chip away at my running goals and stay active.
Too may pet pees to mention! I’m usually in full “old lady” mode these days so, “Get off my lawn!” LOL :)
I try to go to bed by 10:00 but always find just ONE MORE THING TO DO (wink wink) and don’t get in there until 10:30 or 11:00. Makes it really tough when the alarm goes off because I LOVE SLEEP.
Marissa
Pet peeve: negativity! You can definitely complain/be sad/upset but you get to decide how long you stay there! Especially complaining about things you have no control over!
I’m 2 days into the Dopey Challenge at Disney World, so I’m working on holding back so I have some left for the full on Sunday! So I guess plateauing. I was in bed by 8:30 last night for a 3am alarm!
I love playing with my pups or taking them for a walk; it almost instantaneously improves my mood!
Susan
Marissa, YES!!!! Being with my dog can fix almost anything.
Kaitlin
I’m a new reader but I HAD to comment that I was like your daughter w sick wrinkles through my entire childhood. I called them “crickets”- my mom has no idea why, but I absolutely couldn’t do anything until she fixed them just so…. my poor mother. Just had to let you know ?
I’m a very organized person maybe she will be too!
My bf got back into running bc of me and he’s running his first half this fall! He’s gonna get a running watch for Christmas this year. He refuses to switch to Strava instead of MAp my Run.