(Top ((mine is the Boston version)), shoes, shorts)
It’s race week, and it has been quite some time since I was last able to say that.
My friend Jenn is training for a 50 miler, so I joined her for part of her second long run of the week on Saturday. 10 miles @ 8:28 average. I felt terrible for the first 7 miles, but I’ll take that as a good sign for the race because that usually happens to me the week before a good race.
Jenn dealt with crazy plantar problems last year, and Hokas saved her too!
When I got home from my run, everyone was asleep except for Brooke and Knox. They had been hard at work creating a Harry Potter themed room for Andrew (a giant chessboard, flying keys, wand, broomstick, vines, three-headed dog, etc.). Andrew was very surprised. We opened presents and ate breakfast together!
I’m just going to warn you today that the food pictures might make you drool a bit. We ate deliciously all weekend long.
Andrew’s next request was out to our beloved acai bowls.
Next up, we went to his favorite sporting goods store, and his goal is for us to up our pickleball game this summer. Hopefully, nicer paddles will help us with this goal;)
My niece came over and babysat so that we could go to Tsunami for sushi.
Pure joy.
He is thirty-four years old next week (he works on his bday, so we celebrated this weekend instead) with his favorite raspberry cream cheese pie from Kneaders.
Just the normal Sunday for us.
One Pot Garlic Parmesan Pasta is going to be added to our menu often, it was so so good! We also used fresh made noodles from Harmon’s (a nice grocery store in our area) which really took it to the next level.
It’s race week which means my focus is on getting as much sleep as possible and lowering my mileage more and more each day. Positive affirmations are running through my brain, and each time I think about the race, I smile because that brain/body connection is real, and a smile forces positive vibes to your body.
Off today for just a few short fartleks in my run to get the legs moving quickly one last time before the race!
It’s going to be a little bit chilly on Friday, but at least it won’t be snowing during the race (fingers crossed it stays this way).
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Tell me what the best part of your weekend was?
Ever had terrible weather race conditions? Tell me about it!
-My worst was Boston 2015, and I cannot even imagine how hard Boston 2018 must have been!
Do you run the day before a race? Does it depend on the distance?
Sushi and pie… either of them your thing or not so much?!
28 comments
Maureen
I bought some waffle fries while grocery shopping so that I can make the buffalo chicken fries you shared last week! I will now have to make that pasta because who doesn’t want a one pot pasta recipe?!
Hm I think the best part of my weekend was Saturday morning. Unintentionally woke up early but it meant I got to go on a longer walk and find an empty spot to play fetch with my dog before things got crazy and I went to brunch and the hockey game.
The Hungry Runner Girl
You will have to let me know what you think of the buffalo chicken fries… now I am craving them haha. Sounds like the best way to spend a Saturday! Have a great day, Maureen!
Gretchen
This weekend was the best- I went to Myrtle Beach with a few friends to cheer them on during the half marathon! We brought our dogs and had a beachfront house…it was just the best weekend ever. And then we got home and my husband found out he got the job I mentioned last week!! SO- basically the best weekend ever :) Thanks for your good wishes for him!
The Hungry Runner Girl
Gretchen, it sounds like your weekend was perfect. CONGRATULATIONS to your husband. This is such a big deal and the greatest way to end your weekend. I would love to go to Myrtle Beach someday! Happy training, friend!
emily l
The Harry potter birthday theme by the kids is just precious! Happy birthday to Andrew and Happy Race Week Janae! Best of luck!
The Hungry Runner Girl
They must have spent two hours on it… it really was so sweet. I really appreciate that, thank you Emily! Hope your day is off to a wonderful start!
Mariah
Happy early birthday Andrew!! The Harry Potter room sounds so cool! Brooke and Knox are very creative.
I like pie, but not sushi. I feel like the odd one out not liking sushi though haha.
The Hungry Runner Girl
They really are and I love seeing their little minds work. I feel like I have more people in my life that do not like sushi than do. I hope you get some pie soon and have a great day, Mariah!
Mollie
Sounds like such a fun birthday celebration!! Boston 2018 was, indeed, terrible. ?
I never liked pie until I was pregnant with my daughter! It was the only thing that didn’t make me sick for a while ?.
Eeek race week!!!! Yay!! I had my last big workout this weekend because my race week is next week! How?! And today it’s 80 degrees?!! Still waiting to see race day temps but 80 won’t be ideal lol. We’ll see!
Have a great week!
The Hungry Runner Girl
IT’S RACE MONTH FOR YOU! I am just so excited for you and all of the work you have put into these cycles are going to = a pr and hitting your dreams. I am so happy for you! I seriously do not know how you did Boston 2018, I think I would have just hid in my hotel room. Hahah I have never heard of pie being the cure but I’m going to try it if I ever have another baby;). Thanks Mollie, you too!
Wendy
Looks like such a great weekend!
How sweet of Brooke and Knox to decorate with Harry Potter things! Great job you 2 ?
I love the whole family picture before church.
We had a sushi date night this weekend too! It was so delicious!! I think I could eat sushi every day, ha!
So if I am doing a marathon, then I do a little 2 mile shae-out run the day before. If it’s a half marathon, then I’ll run a couple miles 2 days before and if I feel like moving my legs the day before, then it’s just a couple miles or a walk. Then I like to have my feet up as often as possible!
Yay for race week!!
The Hungry Runner Girl
It really was such a fun day celebrating Andrew. So happy you guys went out for sushi, it is just so satisfying. Love hearing what you do before a big race! Thanks Wendy, hope your day is off to a great start!
Corrinne
My husband did Boston 2018 and got hypothermia. Can’t say it was great as a spectator either with a 3 year old in tow. I had to bribe her to get back into a wet cold stroller to help him get back to the hotel when he realized he couldn’t do it by himself. I was supposed do to a half Iron Man once and the predicted temps were close to 120 degrees! So they would only let us do the Olympic distance. It was bearable until the run portion. The goal that day was to finish and not puke.
Sushi and pie sounds amazing! Happy Birthday Andrew.
Best part of my weekend was we had a fake spring day and it was 70 degrees. I got outside for a run which hasn’t happened in awhile with all the snow and ice we have had.
The Hungry Runner Girl
HYPOTHERMIA… I just cannot even imagine. And you had your little one out with you spectating, what a crazy day! Ummmmm 120 degrees. I had to triple check that you wrote 120. I cannot even imagine! I hope you reached your goal that day of not puking ha. I am so glad that you were able to get out and enjoy that fake spring day. I am reallllllly feeling over winter right about now. Happy Monday, Corrinne!
Molly S
I worked all weekend. Finally squeezed out my long run Sunday night. Afterwards we ordered pizza and then I crashed hard.
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I did a New Years half marathon in Chicago. It was a mix of snow, slush and puddles of water. Each step I ran, my shoes pressed out water and soaked up more water.
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How did the Harry Potter decorations turn out?? I love that idea!
The Hungry Runner Girl
Way to get in work this weekend and a long run… pizza and sleep is the best way to celebrate completing all of those things! Sponge shoes… that sounds miserable! I wish I would have taken better pictures, but they turned out awesome. Andrew was so happy. These kids are sure creative. Molly, I hope you are having a beautiful morning!
Amy S
Happy birthday Andrew!!! Hope it’s a great year ahead for you!
I ate at Tsunami when I was in Utah in December!!! I went there for lunch with a friend and it was lovely! I remember being impressed I feel like Utah has such good food even in the suburbs. There were two Mediterranean places in cottonwood heights we kept going back to and I still think about now.
Happy taper week Janae!
The Hungry Runner Girl
YOU DID?! Oh that makes me so happy. DID YOU GO TO SPITZ? I dream about that place. We have definitely upped our food game. Next time you are here, I’m meeting you for Spitz. Thanks friend, have a great day!
Warren Footz
it was a god weekend….I learned all about phytates and phytase and iron deficiency. and a bit about . interment fasting..may give it a shot
I’ve run in mud, so yeah…you still have to run
The Hungry Runner Girl
You’ll have to keep me updated with what works for you! Have a great day, Warren!
Cynthia
At my first half marathon, it was pouring rain and my hands were so cold, I couldn’t open my gels and had to get the aid station volunteers to open them for me. At the same race a year later, it was raining again and then the hail came. My second marathon involved rain, which changed to sleet when I was halfway through. I could feel my shoes squishing with every step, but I wasn’t about to quit! I felt pretty tough after that.
The Hungry Runner Girl
Cynthia, you have endured MANY crazy race day conditions. You are ridiculously tough for finishing those and I bet normal races just feel easy now after those ones ha. Hope your Monday is a great one!
Stacey
Ugh, I was there for Boston 2015, too. I remember having to ask a volunteer to open my banana for me because my hands were so cold, they were nonfunctional.
Happy birthday to Andrew!
The Hungry Runner Girl
I really wish we would have been able to meet there! A day we will never forget. I am so glad that volunteer helped you out, I just remember going straight for a building when I finished to find warmth! Thanks friend and have a great day with your boys!
Loribeth
That sounds like a fun celebration! I bet Andrew loved the decor!
I like sushi but I am not too adventurous with it. And pie is good, but I prefer brownies!
This weekend I had my Chattanooga Challenge….the 5k on Saturday and the half (or full if you wanted that option) on Sunday. We had a forecast of 75 degrees both days, which was phenomenal except we really haven’t had temps that warm to train in. It was fine for the 5k, but I definitely felt it in the half, and the full marathoners were really getting it. I “kept it easy” for the 5k, which still translated to a 12 second PR for me………that happened in my November 5k, too……….but it felt good. On Sunday I was on pace to be just under 2 hours all the way up to mile 10, but the hills & heat slowed me at the end. I finished in 2:02:22, which is almost the year, ha (2022). My PR is from this same race in 2020, and it’s 1:57 something, so I wasn’t that far off!
There were several folks in my running group who either hit PR’s or ran their first half or full, so it made for a really fun weekend. And a few other runners from the group went all over the route to cheer us on! One gal that is 39 weeks pregnant was out there cheering us at mile 4 and the finish! And another biked to about 6 different spots on the course to cheer us on. It really is awesome how cool runners are. I am already sad it’s over!
Katie
Haha, I was Boston 2018! I live here now and see so many people out and about rocking their 2018 shirts while running. I always give them a smile and a thumbs up and say something like, “you survived 2018 too!” That run was BRUTAL (I had hypothermia and became so disoriented and lost at the finish line; luckily, a super kind couple cheering on their son basically saved my life) and I haven’t ran another marathon since. I think I’m still thawing out!
2015 also looked pretty bad though too! It’s crazy how April in Boston can be so different year to year. Wishing you PERFECT weather for your race this week!!
Nichole
Boston 2018 was so traumatic for me. I definitely was hypothermic…I don’t even remember the last 6 miles. It took a year for my body to fully recover. People were bawling at the drop bag area begging for their clothes. It.was.terrible.
Michele H
Most exciting thing this weekend, I ran the LIttle Rock half marathon on Sunday! You had said to let you know how it went. Here is my race recap below. I highly recommend this race if you ever get the chance. https://masterroadrunner.com/legen-wait-for-it-dary/#more-546