Getting Comfortable

Have you ever heard the term, “runner’s high”? It’s that feeling we get as runners where we feel like we are literally floating down the sea of the best feels. No drugs are involved with this, promise. I mean, if that’s your thing, you ride that unicorn. I, however, will be enjoying my drug-free self over here.

This past week of training was quite magical. I’m just going to roll with the unicorn theme. I was hit with a rather hard interval speed work Monday of 1000m repeats with a 600m recovery if I remember correctly to total 8 miles. I don’t think I’ve ever had 8 miles go by so quick. The real test, to me, was my tempo run on Wednesday. For the past 9 weeks, I’ve been running tempo on the treadmill. You see, tempo is like my kryptonite. I know how important it is to practice running at race pace to achieve goals but damn, I am the worst at it. After getting some much needed advice from a friend, I turned off my pace alert and headed outside to go with the feels.

Now, I won’t sit here and BS you about it and say I ran like a friggin’ gazelle BUT I will say that I am so thoroughly impressed with how it went. I walked off a bit after each mile and clearly, I was slower each time, but I’m so happy with the fact that I overcame my fear and just went for it. To hit paces between 8:30-9 all while running on a very not flat surface? I’ll take it. It was about this time that my knee tendonitis, which I thought had subsided from the week prior, decided to make a very roaring return. I’ve dealt with tendonitis for years, it just has a mind of its own. However, I haven’t had a flare up this bad in a long time. I did all the usual suspects which includes the RICE, Biofreeze, and my trusty KT Tape. Despite wanting to chop my leg off, the pain subsided and once Saturday rolled around, I was ready to tackle a long 12 miles. I not only hit my time frame but my average pace was within range. I felt strong even with the hill climbs. Maybe it was because I kept thinking about what I was going to eat for breakfast. Do you ever keep thinking about food? No? I’m weird. I know. Alas, that closes the book on week 9. WE ARE OFFICIALLY HALF WAY!

I finally tried Nuun Rest last week. I waited until I had a rest day because I wasn’t sure how I’d feel the next morning. Now, I was super skeptical at first about this product. Yes, I love Nuun and everything about the company. I’ve enjoyed being an ambassador for them. I already take a magnesium supplement every night before bed to help the body go into relaxation mode and it works. My hand decided to guide a tube of Rest into my cart and wah-lah, FedEx delivered.

Nuun Rest is exactly what it sounds like: a supplement to help you rest. I opted for the Lemon Chamomile because I absolutely love chamomile tea, another option if you’re looking for calming aids. I dissolved the tablet into 6oz of water around 7pm and I kid you not, it was lights out on the couch at 7:45. My husband woke me up and told me to go to bed. According to my Garmin sleep data, I racked in a total of 9 hours of sleep with very minimal movement. The next morning I felt really good, surprisingly. I thought I’d feel overly tired or sluggish but it was smooth sailing. While I did see a positive experience with it, I don’t plan on making it a regular purchase but definitely something I can speak for now.

Now you’ve made it to the good stuff. How about another new recipe? As you know, I’m all about trying new things. I’m a huge fan of Sam and her website, It Doesn’t Taste Like Chicken, because she makes eating vegan (I’m vegetarian currently) super simple and delicious. Hello to this beauty:

This was a newer one she posted. My husband and I loved Korean BBQ when we were meat eaters so anything with “Korean” in the name, I’m game for. This sweet Korean lentil dish was so simple, packed with flavor, and filled us up. The protein content is amazing, too. Definitely worth a try. I paired it with brussel sprouts but you do you! I’ll link the recipe here.

Ho’kay folks, as always, thanks for coming by. We’ll meet back up for a recap of week 10. I can already tell you some sad news is on the way but it’s not what you think it is. Adios!