Another week, another weekly recap!
August has been a lot of fun so far and training for the Indianapolis marathon is in full swing. But you guys are just here for the puppy pictures, right? Ha! Ruth is as cute as ever…but a handful!
But back to marathon training, here’s how things went last week:
Monday: 9 miles with some hills, 9:27 min/mile pace. My coach wanted me to seek out some hills so I ran to meet my friend Christie, who joined me for a few hill repeats, and then I ran back home to get to my 9 miles. I did a Discover Strength group session after work.
Tuesday: 6.21 miles, 9:11 min/mile pace with the Tuesday morning run club crew. I wore a new Oiselle bird bra; I am loving the bright color and pattern!
Wednesday: Another 9 mile morning! This time it was 4 miles easy and then 5 miles progressively faster down to marathon pace. It wasn’t a perfect progressive (8:22, 8:22, 8:24, 7:57, 8:14), but felt pretty solid for the morning. Average pace 8:40 min/mile.
That evening, Dustin and I went to see a concert at Surly Brewing. Such a great venue! It was a perfect summer night, so much fun.
Thursday: Not so much fun was getting up for a 5:30 am run after a concert the night before, ha! I kept this one short with just 5.2 miles, average pace 8:58 min/mile. The average would have been a lot slower, but I had to stop to use a porta-potty and then was forced to sprint to catch up with the rest of the group afterwards!
Discover Strength group session after work.
Friday: I ran to meet my friend Sarah for some easy miles, 6.5 miles total, 9:20 min/mile pace.
Saturday: 15 mile long run; I met up with a small group on the river again for some miles. I have been enjoying running the river road on the weekend, since I run the lakes so much during the week!
9:05 min/mile average. Humid, but felt good!
(Christie and I were the only two with 15 miles, the others went shorter.)
After the run (and a shower), we had puppy school again for Ruth; just one more week before she’s done! We’ve signed up for Obedience Level 1, which will start a few weeks into September. Have to keep the training going!
We were also dog-sitting Breck the Golden Retriever over the weekend. Three dogs in one small house is a lot! He’s a good boy though.
Later that evening, our friends Paul and Laura hosted a “Blind Beer Tasting” party. Paul is quite a talented web developer and he created a mobile- friendly site for us to guess each beer.
Blind tasting was hard! You’d have to guess type first (i.e. ale, lager, amber, IPA, stout, etc.), then brand (Surly, Goose Island, etc.) and then actual beer name. I think the only one I got right was the Leinenkugel’s Summer Shandy. I thought I knew more than that about beer!
But it was a fun evening…I thought these two pics were great- instagram vs. reality! The second one is so much more real. 🙂
Sunday: 5.5 miles with Dustin and Matilda (our older vizsla), 8:35 min/mile. I always end up going a bit faster when I run with Dustin.
Summary: 56 miles of running, 2 strength sessions at Discover Strength.
Overall, it was a good week of training, though there are a few areas where I’m struggling. Solid sleep is still tough, as Ruth does still get up in the middle of the night sometimes to go outside.
I also am struggling in the morning to make time for breakfast; between running 9+ miles, taking care of Ruth, and then getting ready for work, I have often left for work with no food on hand or in my belly! There are plenty of Starbucks and Caribou Coffees in my building downtown, but I need to figure out a good option of something quick to have at home or eat on the way in. Anyone have any favorite healthy ideas for post-run quick breakfast on the go? I think I need to make a batch of the “Run Fast Eat Slow” Superhero muffins, those usually work pretty well to fill me up, but open to other tried-and-true suggestions!
(I swear, this is not how Ruth normally behaves while I get ready in the morning. Normally she runs around like a crazy person all morning! Regardless..still a velcro vizsla, has to be close to me!)
in other news, I finally added a Brookings sticker to my USA wall hanging.
21 states down, 29 to go!
I want to put in a plug for my coaching services! It’s not too late to start working together for a fall goal race. I just started working with a woman who’s running the Philly marathon at the end of November. Plenty of time if you’re interested!
I’m linking up with Running on the Fly and Confessions of a Mother Runner as part of their Weekly Rundown. Check it out!
wow a nice solid week of mileage for you. I like egg based breakfasts after runs. I have a few breakfast casseroles and fritattas that I alternate with. Some have oatmeal. You can make it in advance and cut into portion sizes. So good let me know if you’d like any recipes. Thanks for linking up!
I’m always looking for recipes!
I know how that feels, getting up early (for me, it was at 4:30 LOL) after a very late night concert. Were your ears still ringing, too? Mine were ringing for at least 30 hours post-concert. That was crazy, too. I seldom eat breakfast early in the morning (unless it’s a long-run morning), but I always have something (usually oatmeal) at my desk around 9:00 or 9:30. And, those Insta pics are great…I much prefer the whimsical ones to the “staged” ones 😉
Ha, yes, I’m too old to stay out late 🙂
I don’t eat before I run, but I need something to have at my desk when I get to work or I’ll be so hangry! 9-10 miles and then no food does not work for me.
Another great week of training for you, and I am loving all the doggy photos 🙂
For quick breakfasts, I like to do egg muffins. I make a batch on Sundays and I can just pop them in the microwave to reheat them once I get to work. You can add anything to them – I normally add spinach, a little cheese, sun-dried tomatoes and spinach (and sometimes turkey bacon)
Thanks Kim! Great idea on the egg muffins.
I find I don’t prioritize sleep as much in the summer. There’s just too many fun things going on! I’m time crunched in the morning too so I prep a to-go bowl of yogurt, granola, fruit and nut butter to eat when I get to work. Hits the spot!
Totally! Sleep is hard to prioritize when it’s nice.
Thanks for the breakfast idea!
Looks like the dogs love it when you take their picture! I like making overnight oats. I make enough for 4 or 5 days and then warm it up in the morning while I get ready. I have a short commute to school so I eat in while reading email or getting ready for the day.
Ha, they are hams for the camera, aren’t they!
A lovely solid week for you again and loving the Ruth pics!
Thanks Liz!
Love your 50 states map! I had a friend do all 50. She is now working on the 6 World Marathon Majors. It’s very cool to have a goal. I got to tag along with her for some of the races when they fit my schedule and we always had a great time. Traveling to run is a great way to see the country (or the world)
I did the World Majors already- I’m doing it flip flopped to her 🙂
That is a cool map! I haven’t been doing great with making breakfast either – really need to get back to that when school starts.
Thanks Hannah! A friend made the map for us.
I struggle to squeeze in my morning runs too now that they’re getting longer… but it’s just too hot in the evenings right now so mornings just make more sense…
I know..it’s so hard to get up, but I never regret it after I’m done!
Aww morning vizla
I don’t have a breakfast idea for a hot morning but come fall, love overnight oatmeal in a crockpot.. I toss in a dab of PB for so me protein
Love your new bra – how odd that would sound in a nn running context
Haha, thank you!
Cute sandals! 🙂 And Ruth – such a little nugget! Breakfast is tough for me some days, too. We usually have Kodiak Cakes waffles in the freezer so on days I’m rushing to get out of the door I pop two in the toaster, add some almond butter and eat them on my drive downtown 🙂
Thanks Erin! I’ve reached out to Ami about some family photos with Ruth! Can’t wait!
I love Superhero muffins, too! I also like to make a really big batch of breakfast burritos and then individually wrap and freeze them. You can just nuke one in the microwave for a few min when you’re ready to eat it.
Great ideas Katie, thank you!
Totally here for the puppy pics (but I do enjoy the other stuff too!).
I’ve been having smoothies for breakfast. Easy to take in the car with me if I’m a bit pushed for time, especially after a morning run.
Do you prep the ingredients the night before and then just blend it after your run?
I would if I was using ingredients that had to be prepped, but I’m making super easy smoothies – cranberry juice, apple juice, Greek yoghurt, porridge oats, honey and frozen berries. It can all be put together really quickly.