Summer funtimes scars

Posted on June 10, 2014 by rungineered

Scars. We all have them, both physical and emotional. People have written about them, sung about them, lectured on them. Scars show a map of where our journey has been. There are certainly scars and marks that are traumatic or bring up bad memories. But I love the marks that are all over my body right now. Because they are a testament to the fact that it is nice out and it’s almost summer and I’m having fun.
I’ve got a scratch across my right shin from some sort of thorny twig thing from a run on a new route that turned into a hot mess. Three nails on my right hand were sacrificed to the packing of Krystal’s kitchen. Which made me feel less guilty about cutting my run short. Because boxes of dishes and pans are no joke! I’ve got a huge scratch across my left lower shin from walking into my beach chair on my way to “cross train” by building a sandcastle for a two year old to stomp – yes, technically I yoga’d later for actual cross training. I can’t be lying to get that green square! But it’s fun to pretend for a minute that sand castle building would be enough. I added a new mark last night when I had to sneak off into the woods for a pit stop on the side of Memorial Drive during a 2.3 mile run. Isn’t running just so glamorous? I’ve got mosquito bites on every part of my skin that has been exposed since the snow melted. The itching reminds me that I was out running, eating ice cream, walking around Boston, and running. So many running bug bites. So. Many.

But my favorite marks? My feet. The bottoms of my feet are gross town, USA. I’ve got runner friends losing toe nails left and right. It happened to me before. I expect it to happen again. And though we runners sometimes complain about the distinct awfulness of the look of our feet/lower legs (oh the sock tan lines) there’s always a hint a pride in there too. Because each of those lost toenails or blister or weird skin spot is a record of the miles I’ve put in the books. The mental fight I had to overcome to get through the hard parts. The triumph for finishing a tough workout. So when I look at my feet it just looks like sweet sweet victory.

Anybody else got a good scar or mark from running or summer fun?

Hearts and more marks!

PS Short and sweet this week, but can’t leave out the chart update. Because damn is that thing a good motivator. That and watching my friends’ charts fill up too!

How many times can I write ‘bra’ in one post???

Posted on June 4, 2014 by rungineered

I’m trying really hard to get used to my routine. I want to get a hella lot of green on that wall. I want most days to include just putting on workout clothes and getting the workout done. I want to be so used to it that it doesn’t even occur to me to try to find an excuse. To do that I reeeeeealy need to stop leaving the packing of my gym bag until the morning. I was oh so close on Thursday. I remembered my watch, a hair tie, a headband, and a breathing strip. I had the right shoes and they matched (not as guarentee as you would think). I had mis-matched socks (I like it that way – don’t ask me why). I had sunglasses and my favorite shirt. I had the pants with the pockets that hold my car key safe while I run. I did NOT have a sports bra. Sigh. I remembered having it in my hand. I was sure of it. Because I did laundry on Tuesday and it was hanging from my light – you think I managed to buy a drying rack since the last post?? I remember having it in my hand with my shirt but I was running late (so what else is knew) and figured I must have dropped it. Thankfully I work across the street from Sports Authority and I could really use a new sports bra. So I put on the rest of my running clothes and hit up Sports Authority with a swing by the clearance section while I was there searching through for what other deals there were. When I first started running 3 years ago I didn’t want to go out and spend money on all sorts of gear. Over time I’ve picked up items here and there but I keep running on the same old clothes. Which is how I am with regular clothes too – much to the entertainment/frustration of my mother. But I’ve been doing this a long time. I think its ok to spend a little money so I’m comfortable and I look good (because I know while I’m running my face is probably contorted into a HORRIBLE look and at least I can be in a cute shirt with my chevron headband – thanks KP! – and some sweet $1 aviators. Duh) I don’t even remember what I was talking about. Oh! Shopping. I got the bra and some Nuun and checked out. When I only have a couple things, I leave the bag behind. It’s a little thing, but I try to conserve where I can. At the bottom of the stairs I saw a sign that Gap outlet had a sale. So I went in, sports bra and 4 tubes of Nuun in hand. I found a couple dresses, jeans, and some shorts. And realized that if I went in and tried them on I could change into my new sports bra – win! I ended up with new jeans, a new dress, and a bra stuffed in my gym shorts pocket. So yeah. I toooootally didn’t look like I was shoplifting.

I got to the park to start my run and right as I pulled my car into a spot, a goose pooped on the grass in front of me. Awesome. I stretched (on what I hope was a poop free zone), fired up the Garmin and hit the pavement. And the first interval didn’t suck. And then the second one was good. And by the third I knew I was ahead of last week because I got across the bridge on my route and still had running to do. Last week I stretched the running to get across the bridge. And then. On interval 5. I had 30 seconds left. And then ran through the first 15 seconds of the walking. My legs were still a little sore from Harvard Stadium climbing. But they didn’t feel heavy like they did the last couple runs. Yay drinking enough water! Then I was momentarily waylaid but some fuzzy goslings and there hissing parents.

if only it could have been Ryan Gosling

Coming up to the second bridge, the clouds had cleared an eensy bit and I was getting late evening light on the Charles. The way the path is set, to cross the road, you run under the bridge and then come out around the other side and up onto the bridge and I was feeling good. Last week climbing up the little hill to the bridge was tough. Thursday I felt like a rock star. Getting up the bridge was getting tough but I looked over and the tops of the Hancock and Pru were peaking out and ‘Dog Days are Over’ was blasting in my ears. And it was perfect. I went flying down the other side of the bridge and kicked it up for the last tenth of a mile. Coming to a stop, I felt fantastic. And then I spotted the 5k that some friends were doing so I headed over to try and spot them. No dice. Instead I clapped for the runners I saw then went and did my cool down stretches. In the only patch of grass with no visible goose poop. Then driving home I was stopped by a flat bed tow truck blocking two lanes of traffic. Which was a nice bookend to the day because I started my Thursday helping one other guy push the van of a third guy out of traffic. That’s right. ONE dude and I. Pushed a van! A van!! Full of construction equipment. Ok, so yeah, the driver hit the gas on reverse and that helped some. But that thing was definitely not backing up on its own. Bam!! All the might!

I’m doing this post chronologically wonky. Because the beginning worked with the lack of decent gym bag packing. But you may have noticed I mentioned the Harvard Stadium. I ran the seats on Tuesday. Well. Ran is absolutely the wrong word. More like I hauled my ass up the steps using every method possible. Those bad boys are high and steep!

At one point I came awful close to rolling my body over onto the last seat. I’ve become intrigued with the November Project (a huge group gets together every Wednesday morning at 6:30 to climb the seats) but I’m not ready to show up yet. I wanted to try this out a few times on my own first. It was actually pretty good. Its definitely a work out. I feel like it will work out well as a good cross train for running. And everyone else that was there was sort of just going at their own pace, too. Then I did my power core work out and realized just how much of my core I used to climb those seats. But it felt pretty bad ass to whip out some russian twists to wrap up the night. But. I did not really pay attention to the weather. And didn’t know winter was coming back. So was not appropriately dressed and ended up with my long sleeve work shirt over my gym clothes. Whatever. I got it done. There are 37 sections in the stadium and my training had me doing 20 minutes of XT so I decided to do 10. 2 days later and my legs were only a little sore. I’m sure if I did more, they would have hurt more. But I was sure I would be dead. My body felt like it had had such a great workout. I’m sort of happy that I was able to estimate a good workout for my body. It didn’t derail the rest of my training this week, but I got the workout in. Looks like I have to up the number of sections next time though.

I followed this up with another fantastic run on Saturday morning. The weather was so so so so so nice. Perfect temp, clear skies, moderate pollen (ok. All the pollen. And I sneezed the rest of the day, but whatevs). And I knocked 31 seconds off my 2 mile time! Then I went and had my first massage (thanks KP’s Mom!). Why did I wait so many years to have a massage? They are amazing. AMAZING.

Sunday I went to a Sox game with my mom. It was about a bazillion degrees in the bleachers. But it was a fun game! However I had planned my morning poorly and didn’t cross train before the game. Coming home I stopped off to view an apartment (ugh, this process is a pain in the face) and then hit up Trader Joes for some stuff to make dinner. I was still a mile from home and though normally I’d just walk, I grabbed the bus a a week’s worth of yogurt is heavy, y’all. And the train for another 3 blocks (I was hot and tired and I still didn’t use my car so whatever). I just wanted to make dinner and be done with the day. Couldn’t I just pretend that walking all over the city was cross training? Instead I did yoga and then my strength work out. And then made dinner. And then went to bed at midnight and fell asleep at 1:30.

Monday was a new running interval and I was nervous. Towards the end of the day I wasn’t looking forward to the run. At all. So I turned to my running group for some cheering and “go get ’ems” and instead they said “bitch please, just go run, no excuses” which is why I love them and I love our little (expanding!) family. The run was going ok. It was hard, but parts were good. And then at 12:14 I fell off the edge of the path, rolling my ankle. The path is a maximum of 2 in. above the grass. Maximum. How does that even happen?! Oh, yeah. Be the clutziest person in the vicinity. At least it was pretty.

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Hearts and another week of green

Something is different with this 2014 training cycle

Posted on May 28, 2014 by rungineered

I’m only two and a half weeks in, but it feels different this time. Maybe its because I’ve made improvements in other parts of my life? When I first launched my training in November of 2012 I was working in a job that I was growing to hate. I loved the work and a lot of the people I was doing it with, but the culture of that place wasn’t for me. As the holidays passed I slid deeper into my hole, going directly from engineering to either my part time job or home to TV and bed. I stopped seeing friends. I stopped going out. I stopped running. I took a week’s vacation Christmas to New Year’s and just sat in bed watching bad TV. Which made me start to evaluate if this job was worth it. By January 2nd I had updated my resume. 8 weeks later, I had a new job. I was lucky and found a new job that was great. I started running again. I started cooking again. I started seeing friends again. And I signed up for that half marathon. (It should be noted that taking this job is what put me in Jennie’s neighborhood and got me meeting her to run and convinced me to sign up for that race)

Maybe it’s because I feel less alone this time? It’s not just me in my living room trying to figure this out. I’m not making those tentative first connections with my online running group/family/tribe. And it’s certainly not running alone. 18 months after I first signed up, and a year after I really started training for a race, I regularly meet Jennie for cross training or running, I have a co-worker whom I’m beginning to regularly run with, and I’ve got runner friends all over the US and the world who will find a way to reach through the internet and kick my ass if I don’t get out there. Plus. A bunch of us are now training for the same race. And we’re actually going to meet. In person!!! If I slack off and they don’t I’m going to feel angry at myself for not keeping up. I want to keep up. I want this to be fun. Real bad.

Maybe the motivation is different this time? I’m only two weeks in and maybe I felt like this last year. If I did, I really don’t remember. Probably a little? But this time is different. Last year I wanted to finish strong. Then when I hurt my back and was waylaid for 5 weeks, I just wanted to finish. Looking back now I see the mistakes I made in my training. I’m not crying over spilled milk – I’m trying to learn. Because this year I want to finish strong. Actually strong. So I can hang with my runner friends after and not feel like a giant cloud of pity party.

Maybe it’s my fitness level? I can’t say that I maintained any sort of fitness from last year; I didn’t really end up with much fitness there near the end. And I certainly got a little squishier over the winter. But parts of this feel a little easier. Not so easy that I want to amp it up and add weights. For now I like that my workouts feel right. They’re challenging, I sweat my face off (well, make up), and I push myself as far as I should. The result of which is that at the end of the workout, I feel like a machine. Which makes every thing else in the day feel awesome. Even when I’ve forgotten shampoo and then 12 hours later spill beer onto my pants down to my underwear at a Sox game – hypothetically, of course.

Whatever it is, something feels different. Good different. But different.

Because for maybe the second time ever I didn’t try to get out of a Saturday run. I got up, tried some new pre running food (some success, some failure), and just went running. And a funny thing happened. While I waiting for my breakfast to digest I actually did some chores around the house. I took care of some emails. And I was just plain productive on a Saturday before 10 am. After the run it was time for a quick shower and then off to Boston Calling music festival day 2. And there’s only one way to do that.

Nuun and diet coke.

Not pictured? The banana and string cheese I inhaled.

Hearts and confusing questions

PS training update: a full week of green!!

My first red mark and approximately 17 others things that are more like 6 but I have runner’s brain and can’t math

Posted on May 22, 2014 by rungineered

I bailed on a race on Sunday. Thoroughly and completely. My 2 mile runs for the last two weeks have been abysmal and because running is such a mental game, I was afraid I would take too long to get over finishing in the bottom 10 people again and my training would get off to a lackluster start. Sunday’s race was 5 miles. 5k I would have slogged through. But 5 miles was too much. Going through the week, I was trying to psych myself up for it. I was racing with a lot of friends and I didn’t want to be a quitter in front of all of them. Last Thursday I tried to run 3 miles. I ran 1.6. I was at the gym with Jennie who is healing from injury (like a boss, I might add) and was biking. I walked over to where she was. She took one look at my face and asked “shit show?”. And I said “The shittiest of shit shows.” So she told me to get my butt on the bike and sweat it out. Pulling out my best insolent teenager act, I sat and pouted through 30 minutes. The next day Jennie emailed and basically told me that no one would judge if I didn’t run. And if it ruined my mental game that would be bad. I was still on the fence and finally decided Sunday morning I wouldn’t run, I would spectate. Still I left the house very slowly and didn’t get over there until the race was over. I was pretty upset over the whole day – wishing I was one of the runners – and very nearly regretted going. But once I found my people and just hung out, it was worth the trip over. I was upset enough that I really didn’t take pictures. Promise it happened.

That red mark is going to sit there until early November, staring at me. Reminding me that when I say I’m going to train I should just suck it up and for the love of Christmas just get out there. Based on all this, I made a decision to step back a couple weeks in my training. I swore I wouldn’t move around workouts, but I think it’s totally fine to move back in the program. Because if I’m about to survive 5 months of training it has to be fun (at least sometimes – occasional bad runs are inevitable). Last year after my back stopped hurting and I started up training again I started too far into the training and it wasn’t fun. Every run. For almost three months. I’ve got the time in my schedule. Really I cut into the 5 week gap I had in the middle and put two more weeks at a shorter interval at the front. I think I did the right thing. I think I’ll enjoy these runs and they’ll give me the training kick in the butt I need to make LA the funnest fun it can be.

There’s the week. And the damn red mark. But look at all the green!

I had my first park-at-Herter-Park-and-run-along-the-Charles runs of the season. Really I should just keep running through the winter but I was in such an epic funk this winter that I didn’t. I will say this. I forgot how freakin’ high those bridges climb! And how tiny they look on RunKeeper after. I promise you they feel eternally uphill huge. Despite that, it was still nice to be back out there. Cool down stretches, however, were a challenge. The Canadian geese are migrating back north and are pooping near every. single. waterway. Trunk blanket to he rescue! Can we talk about how magical it is that my trunk supplies are now a blanket, sweatshirt, and beach chair instead of a shovel, snow brush, and bigger snow brush? All the magical.

Side note on this amazing weather. I talk a lot about hating the cold, but Boston this weekend? I can’t even begin to describe how unicorn rainbow sprinkles on top fabulous it was. Saturday I went to meet some family visiting from Michigan and walking down the Comm. Ave median park under trees with bright green new leaves and fading flower buds under an almost painfully blue sky was something I’ll look back at next January. Theoretically. I’ll probably still swear a lot. My love for the John Hancock Tower knows no bounds. And so I take a lot of pictures of it. But look. Look at that blue sky!!

Ok. Back to running. Last week I was mad. I left my Garmin charging all day but when I went to use it the next day, the battery was dead. I brought it to work to charge Monday and after having it plugged in for an hour I checked – still “low battery” I had noticed some black on the back of it but I had figured it was dirt. Turns out if you write on your arm and then put your watch on and then sweat/have 1500 cups of water spilled on you (ooh. I still owe a how-to-work-a-marathon-water-stop-in-a-million-easy-steps post) the marker smudges and effs up the contacts on the watch. Luckily for me, I work with science! and we have alcohol wipes left, right, and center. A quick clean up and problem solved.

After my pretty good run I had allllll the energy and did some laundry, finally washing all my running clothes at once instead of sneaking them in loads here and there. I know that can be bad for the fabrics but I HATE laundry and thinking anything about it was too much. I’m trying to take better care of my things and not just shove all these tech fabrics into the dryer. Problem: I don’t have a drying rack. Solution? Make one. Any tool can be the right tool (that’s a throw back to my childhood watching the Red Green Show with step dad John). Right now my clothes are drying on a) my reconditioned steamer trunk (thanks John!) b) the bendable arm of my standing light c) the thumb switch of said light d) my towel and bathrobe hooks e) the top of my empty (thanks to runner’s energy cleaning) trashcan f) a rolled up and stood on its end yoga mat g) my pop-up tail gating tent (packed up into its bag thingy) and the pièce de résistance h) a ski pole. I was like Oprah and my clothes were free cars.

Methinks it’s time for a trip to the Tar-jay.

Just 12 hours later; le sigh. I have committed to not packing a gym bag in the morning because I always end up at the gym at work with no post workout non sweaty underwear or un-moused hair or no work shoes. Despite being sleepy and wanting my bed real real bad Monday night, I packed a bag. Tuesday morning I kicked my workout’s ass. I mean, after I was done with it, it wasn’t even recognizable to its mother. And after a good run on Monday I was riding a sweet sweet high. A high that came crashing down when I discovered I had no shampoo or soap. So I turned on the shower and then holding my towel with one hand, I fill the other with the foamy hand soap from the sinks (glamorous!) and then getting in the shower, held that hand above me while I rinsed off and then soaped up. There was no WAY I was putting that in my curls, so my hair just got wet and then went to work dirty. I’ve been doing this workout before work thing almost a whole year. I have a toiletry bag I keep in my gym bag. And even before that, I did this occasionally. So WTH?? In my defence, I changed bags for the summer and forgot to move it. Still. Total and complete #epicfail . This also explains the extra shot coffee that made it’s way to Instagram this week. Because sometimes – lots of coffee.

Hearts and I don’t know, random stuff

Let’s get visual, visual

Posted on May 15, 2014 by rungineered

If that title doesn’t make you sing Olivia Newton John the rest of today then your brain and my brain are wired very differently.

I’m singing that 80s-hit-that-no-one-understands because I’m trying something with training and the planning that goes into a big race. Because I’ve discovered in the last couple of years that I really do well with paper visual aids. At work when I’m reviewing a big document I nearly always print at least part of it. When I’m working out a tough problem or searching for the right words, I’ll pace and toss around a wiffle ball/bat – my co-workers always worry I’m going to take a swing, but I haven’t been tempted. Yet.

I think all this visual/physical interpretation comes from the quarter of me that’s Italian. Or at least I tell myself this. I’m a hand talker. I don’t understand people who aren’t. What do you do with your hands while you’re talking?? Just let them lay there? It confuses me. This is also why anything beyond calc 1 and 2 in college would have destroyed me. How can math lead to theoretical points in theoretical space that isn’t actually space??? All of this makes me wonder about my approach to training. With all the modern conveniences of technology I track all of my training online. It works out pretty well. My google doc that has all my workouts is easy to access from anywhere. And my Garmin and RunKeeper keep my stats and running routes. Plus connect me to other active friends. My running group is virtual. I communicate primarily through Facebook or email. But with all that virtualness, it’s easy to say “tomorrow” to say “oh, my schedule is moveable” and sneak into my spreadsheet and cut/paste cells left and right. Which let’s me come up with excuses. Not this time. No sir.

This time I’ve printed my schedule. I’ve hung it up. I bought red and green markers.I’ve taped it to the wall.

I’m set.

I want this training to be a priority. I want it to go well. To do that, I can’t slack off. I have to do the cross training – and not just half assing it on the elliptical. I need to do the rest of the workouts. I need to run. On schedule. I’m running this race with so many friends. And after the last hot mess of a race, I know I won’t have as much fun if I go into the race wishing I had trained better. So there it is. 24 weeks in black and white (plus 2 weeks of recovery). And blue and orange and yellow. And already 3 green days!! Let’s hope there’s a lot more green that shows up. No. Not hope. Let’s WATCH more green show up!

Hearts and runnerding

It’s Happening Again

Image

Back in October 2012, I received an email from Nicole at Lifelessbullshit.com telling her followers about a half marathon training plan and group she was putting together. I signed up so fast I can’t even tell you. I looked at all the training materials and realized I was woefully under prepared for half marathon at the end of that month. I decided to DNS that one and plan my next.

Fast forward 18 months and I’ve run a half marathon with the plan and made (what I suspect) lifelong internet friends. When I crossed the finish line of my first half which went less than awesomely, I didn’t say “never again” but I did say “Not again for a while”. It would appear that a “while” is one year and 3 weeks. Because I pulled the trigger this morning.

That’s right. My registration finger got itchy and I signed up for the LA Rock ‘n’ Roll half marathon in October. Eep. Nicole emailed out about running this thing with our group and I emailed two of my virtual runner friends Kathy and Rachel to ask “are you doing this thing, I’m 98.9% I am.” You see, I’ve been trying to meet these women for more than a YEAR! We’ve been running together virtually, cheering each other on after successes big and small (good run days and half marathon finish lines), and commiserating over injury or bad weather or any other little thing. And though I would have probably gone either way because I love my running group, I was really hoping I’d get to meet these two (and Nicole!) finally. This running group has been amazing. And I think probably all of my facebook friends and IRL friends would agree, because I have a single place where I can go and talk about running non-stop and I don’t bore them with every little detail about fueling and watering and being bored or exhilarated by a route (except Jennie. She has to listen to it no matter what. Of course, I listen to her too. So it works out). And now I have an opportunity to run with these people that I’ve been talking to online forever. Our emails went back and forth a little and then I woke up yesterday to a message from Rachel “So…we’re doing this? ARE WE DOING THIS? YOU GUYS!” And A) I was in. 100% and B) the 0 to 13.1 bull shit free runners are the best. This email, of course, sent us into a tizzy of emails flying back and forth all day, a happy dance in my cube, and so much excitement I had to sit down for a minute. Because, you guys? It is on.

I am so unbelievably excited to finally meet people I’ve been cheering on/being cheered on by virtually for more than a year. And it feels good to be training for another big race. Good. And also scary. I don’t want a repeat of that last race. I don’t want to let myself train poorly again. I want this to be an unbelievably fun weekend. And only a well prepared for race will get me there. So it’s back to spreadsheets, a better dedication to eating well, and a slightly higher rate of saying no to drinks. Slightly. I still have a summer of Sox games and patio drinks to get through.

The race is In 24 weeks. Uh. What? I guess I should put down the beers, un-bury my Garmin, and pound some pavement. Has anyone seen my body glide?

Hearts and half marathons!

My brain is too cold to come up with a title

Posted on April 30, 2014 by rungineered

HOW IS IT STILL COLD?????

Ok. That’s over. Well. Not over. Because I think it might never be warm again. I probably say this every year on April 30. But good grief. I’m still running on a treadmill because it’s cold and though 42 is way way better than, say, 4, we’ve had some warmth here for a few days (I even had a sunroof open) before it was yanked away. And temperature is relative. So 42 is awful. Straight up. Still. I got my run in. And it was 84% great and 16% I-want-to-die-why-do-I-run-again? This would probably be a 94/6 if it was outside. But I guess I can give up on that. It probably would have been 77/23 if Ok Go’s “Here We Go Again” didn’t come on. That song has the perfect beat and the music video is with treadmills. Fitting for my run today. If only I had as much fun as they did.

I’m trying to stick to my training plan more closely than the last time around (oh, 2013 half marathon, you were such a bummer. Let’s never do that again mmk?). This means that yesterday I did squats and walking lunges and modified deadlifts and calf raises. I woke up this morning and was trying to figure out why my legs wouldn’t work. Then I remembered my work out yesterday. Damn. I stretched pre run, ran, and then went to stretch post run (following the program!) but when I sat on the floor to pull up my cool down stretch plan, I couldn’t sit with my legs outstretched in front of me. A day of running up and down to the 2nd floor office is going to be awesome. Just as awesome as swinging by Jennie’s before work and climbing two flights of stairs. The stairs aren’t all that awful (yes they are) but the worst WORST part is that the top stair is a solid 2-3 inches taller than ALL the other steps. So you finally get up there and your last step has to be GIANT. I think every time I’ve gone over there I’ve had to pause at the top of her steps to let my muscles unsieze. This morning I had to hold to the railing for fear of toppling back down them. In the pouring rain. The cold cold pouring rain

Yes. The weather again. Apparently I refuse to get over it. I’m wearing a fall/winter sweater and scarf in protest of the cold. I had been trying to wear bright springy things to bring on the warmth but that wasn’t working and I just give up. I’m glad because it was freezing inside the locker room at the gym and when I finally put my sweater on, feeling returned to my fingers. The cool temperature of the gym locker room is a double edged sword. It’s awesome from an exercise perspective. I already sweat into my eyes on a regular basis. No need for it to be warmer. And if I didn’t have the locker room to cool down in it would be a week before I could get in the shower and feel like I’m not going to be still sweating after. But coming out of the shower? So not awesome. It’s a race to see how quickly I can get clothes on. I trudged out of the gym and said a lot of swear words at the rain on the way to my car. And coffee.

As a deal with myself, any day I make it to the gym/run/workout in the morning, I can stop at Starbucks for a latte. It helps motivate and also keep my latte numbers down at a manageable level. My closest Starbucks is in a Target. I needed a couple things so I squeezed in 5 minutes of shopping. It seems Target got the memo that it’s still cold and cranked the heat up. By the time I rolled up to the Starbucks counter I was starting to sweat again. Influenced by this, I bought an iced coffee. I was happy about this decision until I got to the door to see that along with the cold, the skies had opened up and it was pouring. Then I wished for hot coffee. Well, really my warm bed and flannel jams. But I’m not sure my boss would be on board with that plan.

I guess I’m just going to sit here huddled in my office fleece and think about warm things. Anybody got a left over marathon space blanket they’re not using?

Hearts and sunshine.

Because if the sun doesn’t start shining Ima cut someone.

Ugh, my back. It’s a butthead. So is winter.

Posted on April 6, 2014 by rungineered

Wow. Well. Yeah. I haven’t blogged in a while. It’s a confluence of things. But mostly I’m blaming winter. I become the worst kind of runner in winter. Meaning I don’t run. And if there’s one thing I’ve learned; the best way to be a runner is consistency. Case in point, I ran about 3 times in February and then showed up for a little 3 miler in my home city. The race was awesome and I bombed into the finish chute passing a woman to do it. (I also passed about 40 people running up a hill!) My Facebook post to my running group was all sunshine and rainbows and I was pumped for the next race in the series. Fast forward 48 hours and I’m getting ready in the morning. I shower, dry my hair (which involves bending over), and then putting on a little make-up. Suddenly and without warning my back seized and I was right back to where I was last summer. On the DL “until the pain went away”. And there wasn’t a damn thing I could do to heal faster.

I still went to the gym a couple times a week for the bike, but not nearly as much as I should have. And I basically hid under heated blankets. Because it just wouldn’t get warmer. But then 5 weeks had passed. And my back was feeling sort of ok. And a co-worker who is also coming back from an injury offered to go run at a 1:30min run 1 min walk interval. And I thought that sounded like a good way to restart running. So I said “sure!” And we ran. And then I waited. I could have probably gone running but some part of me wasn’t ready to get all gung ho back into yet. I think I was probably a little afraid that I’d get excited, go for a 2nd run in a week and then reinjure myself and be 76 kinds of sad and stir crazy. ESPECIALLY now that the sun is up after work, temperatures are rising, and there is green along the Charles instead of dirty white.

Fast forward a week and I’ve gone on two runs this week and one gym session. It should be 3 and 2, but let’s use baby steps, okay? Of course I got up on this Sunday morning, dog sitting for Charlotte, and headed out on my run along the Charles. And damn if it wasn’t gorgeous and soul soothing and hells yes, someone find me a manatee to hug perfect.

I mean, the water was flowing (no ice!), I could run right down by the water (no ice!), the sun felt warm (Earth tilt!), crew teams were out (no ice!), and people were everywhere. Of course it’s early April so as I sit here 6 hours later my face is on fire with wind burn. And I was in long sleeves and a winter hat. But it was outside and not a pile of death. I’d like to say I’m someone who got out there all winter, but my half marathon sort of killed my running spirit and it was so brutally cold that I just couldn’t find the motivation. Continued amazing weather by the Charles is just the right kind of motivation.

I think I’m back and will be here to entertain you with tails from my trails (both concrete and dirt). I’m still trying to decide what kind of goals I want for myself. Right now it’s a 5 miler in May. After that, who knows. I’m moving in September. And then immediately leaving for Peru. And then going to a wedding in Kansas City. And then October. Do I really want to long run the day I get back from Peru? Or during the wedding weekend? I don’t know. But I have a while to decide. For now I’m going to enjoy lacing up and watching Spring burst out around the Charles and this fabulous city I call home! And also cheering for my beloved Sox (while mourning the loss of College Basketball [the Cyclones are basically the only reason I didn’t go completely bat shit crazy this winter])

Hearts and red tinged trees!!

PS If you’re not from a place where trees lose leaves, some time in early spring the buds on the trees start to appear and give the trees a red tint around the edges which is then followed by bright green baby leaves and then finally green leaves for daaaaaays!

National Corn Chip Day

Posted on January 29, 2014 by rungineered

I love cooking for people. I think it’s one of the things I like most to do. Unfortunately, i haven’t done a lot of it in the past few years. My last apartment was far away from everyone and my current apartment does not lend itself well to entertaining. But! Fun fact. If we’re friends and I find out your birthday is some sort of weird “national day of something” I will take full advantage. January 29th is a friend’s birthday and also National Corn Chip day. I knew she wouldn’t be in on her birthday (we work together) so I was trying to decide how to celebrate. I was thinking about just sending some flowers with a “Happy Corn Chip Day” message. Lame. Then I tried to think if someone would deliver chips. How do you even google that? And then I thought about a little more and a plan started forming. To start I knew I needed the right chips. Anna’s Taqueria has some of the best chips in the city of Boston and there’s an Anna’s right in my neighborhood. Done. Also done? The taco I bought while I was there. Mmmmmm. Tacooooo.

Then: the dips. I have a guac recipe I love from my cuisinart food processor manual. And then I needed some more dips/salsas. And that’s where google stepped in. I settled on a salsa from the pioneer woman (because that blog is fantastic), a tomatillo salsa because I wanted to cook with tomatillos (a first!), and a white bean dip with bacon because bacon. Armed with my recipes I went shopping and then I proceeded to organize, destroy, and reorganize my kitchen. All while watching the Newsroom season 1 for a third time on my phone gripped to a cabinet handle. And of course I took pictures of the process.

The ingredients. I will note I came home with tomato puree and not whole tomatoes and no green onions so I had to go back out. Also the red onion and paste were actually for a recipe I had decided not to use but forgot to update my shopping list

I forgot the picture of everything washed. I’m sad now. That looked nice.

Cutting and chopping is so soothing. I forgot to take the picture before I put the tomatillos, onion, and jalapeno in the oven so that’s what was in the big empty space. Also, the chip bag turned into “trash” and was super helpful to have that so close

Roasting vegetables!

I was cruising along and then looked up and realized I had officially exploded all over the kitchen

Guac was done, and tester chips to make sure everything was good

I cleaned that food processor 4! times. This was the main working area and when I moved all the bowls etc. to clean I found drips and drops everywhere.

Roasted vegetables cooling and beans cooked in the bacon fat after the garlic was added. The recipe was right. Garlic cooking in bacon fat smells amaaaaaaazing. See also, my hands still smell like garlic nearly 24 hours later despite using my little stainless steel garlic-smell remove tool

This salsa was so easy and is so tasty and it makes about 100 gallons. Also. I forgot the garlic! Sads

4 bags of chips, 4 dips.

Wrapped up all pretty. Each tag has a partying corn chip. Because – have you met me? Of course it had a partying corn chip on it.

So there you have it. Happy National Corn Chip Day!! As I said in the not-birthday card “go find someone with a sombrero and some margaritas and have a party”. I’ll just be over here with the guac that wouldn’t “fit” in the jar. What. I had to fit in the pit. And some air…

Hearts and corn chips!

Recipes:

Guac (see page 14)

Salsa

Tomatillo Salsa

White Bean

Power Core Wednesday!

Posted on January 15, 2014 by rungineered

It’s Wednesday here at rungineered. And you know what that means???

Power Core Wednesday. Or as I like to call it pre-sore core Thursday. Wednesday is a combination of cross training and then planks, Russian twists, and v-ups. V-ups are the devil. But damn if I don’t feel like a rock star when I can pull of a couple of good ones.

Oh. My. Lanta. was I cranky on Tuesday. At one point I referred to myself as a Crankasaurus Rex stomping all over my office, crushing the happiness of the people around me. I even whined to someone “tell me something funny” and she did. And it helped. Temporarily. But by 4:30 I could have put any two year old missing snack time’s pout to shame. Shame I tell you!

I couldn’t figure it out. Yes, I had spent a better part of my morning at the dealership finding out just how much money it would take to make my check engine light go away. But the waiting area was suuuuuuper swanky. And I wasn’t cranky in the morning. I ate lunch. I had a meeting. And then BAM! Crank.

I thought maybe I needed a snack – nothing. Caffeine – nothing. A funny story – nothing. Whining via email – nothing. Meanwhile, on the same day that I scheduled my car to be fixed my phone decided it would no longer accept chargers. Of any kind. Unless I plugged it in and out 14 times, stood on one foot, and held my breath. So I knew a new phone was also in order. Damn.

The Verizon store is one mile away. My scheduled run was 2ish. I thought I’d run there, buy the phone, and run back. I got home and out of the car and it was kind of cold and raining hard and I thought “eff it. I’ll just drive over” and then I stood in the rain and thought about it. And thought about it. And probably looked like a crazy person in the movies – standing in the rain. But the more I thought about it, the more I convinced myself that I would feel better. I changed, grabbed Senor Garmin, and hit the streets. Even walking down to where I wanted to start and waiting for the satellites I was cranky. And then I thought about it a little more and if I ran half, bought the phone, and ran home, my hands would be full. And after stopping I wouldn’t want to start again. So I made a game time decision and picked a 2 mile loop that would land me a little bit before Verizon at 2 miles.

Absolutely no exaggeration (boy did I butcher the spelling of that word. Let’s all give a cheer for spell check) in anyway. 10 steps into my run, the cranky just floated away. Like it was a physical thing that just got up and left.My body said “you are no longer wanted here. GTFO”. The whole run was good. I waved to my favorite bakery. I waved to my friends’ house (they’re married. How do I refer to their house? friends’, friend’s, friend’s’s’s?) I bombed straight up a hill. I ran face first into windy rain and even offered an “I’m gritting it out grimace”. I wrapped it up in front of the Coolidge Corner movie theatre which is such a cool sign. I snapped my accountability photo for my running group, finished off the last two and half minutes of the GymPact. Stretched a little. And then proceeded to stand in the Verizon store for an hour soaked in my own sweat and drenched in rain. (Sorry customer service dude!)

But. BUT! No crank. Even when he struggled and we had to redo some stuff. I just thought – hey whatever, as long as I’m able to come home with a phone that will charge when I tell it to.

I had always heard about people that find running to be a great mind clearer. But my mind is always focused on “OMG dont throw up. Don’t fall. Is this too easy? (bahahahaha) Is this too hard? Could you do better? Why can’t I breathe? I regret all the beer I drank last week, And the chocolate. I do not regret those tacos, though. I can never get my brain to cool it. And suddenly, I did. I just went about kicking my run’s ass.