Tuesday Tangents + this was frightening.

(leggings, cali hoodie, shoes, hat, bra)

We saw a cougar (it could have been a dog, but it looked just like a cougar, especially the way it was running, and it was right where we last saw one). It wasn’t far enough away from us. It was the most scared I have ever felt on a run because he was too close… I hope I never see one of those again.

Other than the cougar, it was a great morning with the girls.

I love winter so much.

I also did a 30-minute strength for runners class with Matt Wilpers (from 07/15/21). I love Peloton’s strength for runners classes, and my goal is to get in plenty of them in preparation for Boston training.

Just a typical day for me, but the best thing I ate was our favorite chicken noodle soup (with homemade noodles, thanks to Brooke) on top of mashed potatoes. I’ll keep telling you about this combo until you try it;)


I have some tangents today!

*As if I needed another reason to be extremely excited about Boston (Des will be there too!!!)…

*Is it too soon to be looking at where I am going to be in terms of my cycle for Boston?! Hahaha, I was overjoyed when I saw Day 10–> Mid Follicular Phase!!
*This stuff is just so interesting to me… PUSH FOR PRS!

*We started TRIPLING Shalanes’ quinoa salad because we go through it so fast.

*New holiday/winterish nails (inspired by post)

*Target girls’ trips. Good for my soul.

*I was definitely not a fan of doing the mile in school. It’s crazy how much my feelings have changed over the years (ehhh, decades) because running in PE was the worst for me.
*Beck was distraught yesterday because Skye left playing with him for a minute to use the restroom. He is dreading her kindergarten days already.
*Did you see this amazing finish by Caroline Williams? She made the OTQ by three seconds! Thankfully, they go off of chip time now instead of gun time like they used to.
@trialsofmiles Caroline Williams grabbing the OTQ this morning at CIM in dramatic fashion #marathon #cim #olympictrials #marathonrunning #distance #distancerunning #marathonracing ♬ Sail – AWOLNATION


Did you like running the mile in PE? When did you catch the running bug?

-My first marathon training cycle in 2010 is when I started to really love it.

Have a tangent for me?

Who has seen a cougar when running?

-I think my heart would have stopped beating if I was alone yesterday in that situation.

Do you do Christmas Cards?

-I never have, but I think I might this year?!

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36 comments

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Doing the mile in school is where I fell in love with running. I discovered I was good at something =].
Never a cougar but often I see coyotes. They scare me even though everyone says I don’t need to fear them.
We no longer do Christmas cards – I sure miss getting them from family and friends. You could send me one =]
Stay safe !

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That makes me so happy that the mile in school is where you fell in love with running. Ummmm coyotes freak me out so bad. I saw one on a trail run once and it scared me so bad. I’ll send you one if we do them! Have the best day, Elsie!

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Can you remind me of the name of the period tracker you use? Thanks!

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Yes of course I LOVE this one….

https://wild.ai/

Have a great day, Allison!

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That is TERRIFYING! I’m so glad you were with people!! I was on a hike with my dog a couple years ago and we were on a pretty desolate trail. It was eerily quiet and all of a sudden she stopped dead in her tracks and got so spooked and refused to go in that direction. I turned with her and we bolted. No idea what it was but I trust her judgement over my own lol.

Ps – This is may be a dumb question but I’ve been meaning to ask! I don’t have a Peloton but have been curious about the workouts and want to be better about strength training in the winter. Can you just buy the app? And are the strength classes mostly bodyweight and/or maybe light/medium weights or do you need more equipment than that? THANK YOU!!

Hope you’re having the best week!!

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You can get just the app! I can’t give you particulars about it because I have a bike, so I’m not familiar with app only. I also really enjoy the strength for runners classes, and there are lots of options – body weight, mini bands, regular bands, and weights. And you can always tailor the weight to your ability. I’ve been terrible about doing my strength this year, so I’ve done a lot of the classes without weights or light weights instead of what they recommend.

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So helpful!! Thank you, Linda!!!

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Not a stupid question at all! Linda crushed it with her answer too. Seriously, there is whatever you could ever want on the app and it is so easy to filter it to what you need.

That would have freaked me out too… dogs know long before we do what is up ahead! Thanks Arthi, you too!

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I hear that spotting a cougar is good luck for your next marathon (I made that up but why can’t it be real??).
Can my tangent be that I saw Michelle Obama with guest moderator David Letterman last night?? GAH. I love her. And really love when she busts Barack’s chops.

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OH MY GOODNESS, what a special night and I am so jealous. Best tangent. Hahaha I’m taking it as truth… it is good luck. Happy Tuesday, Molly!

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I have never seen a cougar, because there aren’t any here. Have come across moose, bear, deer, lynx, foxes and bunnies along our routes. That’s enough thank you. The moose was insanely huge!
We do Christmas cards with the kids delightfully awful school pictures every year. It’s fun.
I’m eating stir fry and the ends of squares I cut to sell at 9:30am planning my run for when I’m off work in an hour or so

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BEAR!! Oh my goodness, you have seen it all on your runs. Moose are so scary and large. And Brooke is going to be so jealous of your fox sightings. GREAT idea with the school pictures haha. Happy run today and now I need stir fry. That sounds so good right now. Happy Tuesday, Julia!

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Was it a requirement to wear maroon during yesterday’s run?! 3 of you just happen to have it on haha. So scary about that cougar!! I’ve never seen a cougar but there was a coyote in my parents back yard a few years ago which scared me so much because I was sitting on their patio furniture working and quickly made my way inside.

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Bahaha isn’t that funny?! Two of them even had on the exact same jacket! Coyotes freak me out! I would have ran inside really fast too. I hope you are having a beautiful morning, Maureen!

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Wow! Thank goodness you were with friends for the cougar sighting. That would just be too scary solo.
The mile in school was pure torture. I started loving running when I was 26 and started running “to exercise my dog.” LOL! He was not about it unless there was a ball or stick to chase.
Tangent: I’ve been looking forward to chicken with orzo and lemon soup for lunch since last night (Progresso, though it probably wouldn’t be hard to make).
I’m hit or miss with Christmas cards, but I definitely take the shortcut with the photo/photo collage style instead of a newsy letter.

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I think I would have been that animal’s breakfast if I was alone! SO scary. Torture is the perfect word to describe how I felt about running the mile in school too. I love that your dog is what got you into loving running… and you stuck with it and he just wanted to play fetch haha. Can I come over for lunch? That sounds so good. I LOVE the collage style personally… so keep it up:). Hope your day is off to a great start, Corey!

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Yikes a cougar! I would have been so scared. I love your multi colored christmas nails.

I started runing in college. The racing bug came later lol! Random tangent I entered the race lottery for one of my favorite race destinations. But so far haven’t really planned out 2023. The permitting for a race I planned to do in 2023 is still up in the air so I am deciding what I want to do in terms of racing and other priorities !

Excited for your Boston training! Happy Tuesday Janae!

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Thank you, Kristine! I am loving them too:). I LOVED your tangent… I’m hoping you get in the lottery! You have to let me know what races you end up deciding on for 2023. Happy Tuesday to you too!

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I have never seen a Cougar on the trails but I am so afraid I will when I am out there alone! Lucky for me Boulder trails are pretty busy so even if I am not running with people someone is *usually* around. How scary!

The salad looks amazing, we will have to try making it next week.

We do send Christmas cards every year but I feel like not many people our generation do.

I cried watching that clip of Caroline, and made my kids wonder what was wrong with me. I just LOVE watching people reach their dreams! (I think I cried when you got your sub 3 as well)

I loved doing the mile in school and now I have my kids do a mile run with me and we time it to see how we are doing, they love it. My 6 year old’s goal is to run a 5k without stopping by the end of the school year.

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Thank goodness your trails are pretty open! I hope I never see one again ha. I want a Christmas card! Ummmm you cried for my sub 3, okay I just want to give you a hug right now. Thank you. You are amazing for spreading your love of running with your kids. It just does so much for us. Cannot wait for your 6 year old’s 5k wahoo! Hope your day is off to a great start, Beth!

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Hi Janae! Oh my goodness I hated the mile in school! I literally passed out once after running it ( I was also on my period). Turns out running is more fun when you run multiple miles because the first mile is the worst!
A cougar is terrifying! Glad you were with other people!
Have an awesome day!

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You passed out ahhhh oh that would have been traumatic. Hahah valid point, the first mile truly is always the worst. Thank you so much, Amy! You too!

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Okay – so every time I read blogs from people who run out west, I am so nervous for them because of cougars and bears. Especially the trail running stuff. That is maybe the scariest thing that could happen. I would start at least carrying some bear mace or pepper spray or something!! Makes my heart stop to think about it. Be careful!

That chicken noodle soup looks divine. I need soup this week at some point.

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We really need to start carrying some spray, but luckily I am always in a big group (5 of us yesterday) so cougars don’t want anything to do with groups… but I’d rather be safe than sorry! Adding it to my list. Let me know what soup you end up making… it’s just too good right now! Have the best day, Melissa!

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So scary! Thankfully you were with other people. I haven’t ever seen a cougar, but there are some trails sort of near us where mountain bikers have been attacked by cougars. Yikes! I often cross paths with coyotes, and that’s scary enough, ha ha.
I have loved the strength for runners classes! I think I have done all of them once, but keep going back to them often. You should try some of the pilates with Kristin MgGee. So good for the core, and I feel like it really stretches everything out.
I am excited for the Boston marathon. It will be fun to see which of our favorite elites will be running.
We do a photo Christmas card every year. I think it’s fun, and I love getting them too. It’s funny you haven’t done one. You always have such good pictures of the family and the kids.
This is the last week for the holiday toy/food program I’m doing with the school district, so I am happily trying to get back into my regular running and workout routine.
I loved running in PE in elementary school, but then didn’t like it after that. Funny. I was about 37 when I trained for my 1st half marathon and fell in love with running. So glad I discovered it!
Off to the gym for a treadmill run and Barre strength class 😊
Have a good day Janae.

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Seriously, I don’t know what I would have done if I was alone! Oh that is terrifying about those trails in California. Coyotes freak me out so bad. They need to add more of the strength for runners classes! I will try her next, thank you! I know, I think I just forget until it’s too late, I really want to do them! Yay for the program finishing up, you are amazing. SO happy we all found running and I hope the gym was great today. Thanks Wendy, you too!

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Hated running in HS. In the South, the humid air destroyed my hair and that was VERY important to my teen self. The rest of the day of the was a hot mess.

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Oh I can totally imagine how that humidity would have made the whole experience even worse for me too!

I hope you are having a beautiful morning, Marcie!

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Omg saving this soup recipe- thank you! Ordered a peloton on black friday- cant wait! Glad the cougar didnt get any closer- yikes!

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LET ME KNOW WHAT YOU THINK OF YOUR PELOTON! I am so so excited for you. Oh, and enjoy that soup (and put it on top of homemade mashed potatoes;). Have a great day, Anna!

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Saw a mountain lion for the first time this year while out on the trails by myself. It shot across the path behind me, chasing after a deer! Scary, but exhilarating!

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Oh. My. Gosh.

Thank goodness it had a deer to chase after.

Isn’t is amazing watching their muscles work as they run? I told my sister after that it was the most beautiful deadly experience I think I’ll ever have! So glad you were okay!

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I don’t even remember running the mile in PE it was so long ago! I was in my 30s when I started running. I’ll be 60 in about 16 months and am feeling really good these days!

Tangent: Funny thing happened on my run this morning. I came around a curve and construction workers were setting up. I got a “You go!” from one of the guys, then another one held up the “SLOW” sign and used his other hand to motion me to slow down (there was no traffic and he was smiling.) I said, “I can’t slow down now, I’m in the groove!” It felt great to get some unexpected cheering this morning ;)

I have not seen a cougar while running, we do have them in our area and I think about it sometimes when I’m on the trail.

I don’t do Christmas cards every year, but I am this year. We like to do the picture ones (super easy to upload to Shutterfly or Walmart.)

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I’ve seen a bear on my run and I’ve also been chased by a mama and baby moose. Thankfully a truck driving by saw what was happening and drove right in between us and literally saved us. Soooo scary.

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I’m Canadian. We didn’t do the mile. We ran at least 5km regularly in PE, around a grass field. I loved it. I don’t get how people hated it then but love it now.

That OTQ girl has the strangest gait pattern. I understand tired legs but that looks more like next day running. Maybe.

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running was never really a thing for us in school, every other sport except..if that sport was soccer, football, volleyball or basketball……wish it was, maybe……I loved PE though, you got credits for playing….except gymnatsics, I could ahve done without that…
cougars I will say scare me..I’ve crossed paths with black bears, they’re more scared of us….but cougars are huge. we have bear bells, we have bear spray, what do you do cougars
mashed potatoes and chicken soup has me interested…I’ve become a tomato soup and grilled cheese sandwich lately, must be a winter thing…..

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