Colors, art, and you NEED this in your life NOW!

My weekend started off with so much color!  On the run...

My new guilty pleasure.  I cannot get enough of running to this.

I've said it once, and I'll say it again ------> Life's too short for matching running socks.

I realized after my run that I had left my jar of peanut butter at school.  DERP.  I knew I wanted oatmeal, and made an executive decision.  YEAH.  I put Nutella in my oatmeal.  AND IT WAS AMAZING.

Showered up and did some chores around the house, then we were off to pick up Sophia for the weekend.  We decided that we were going to eat at Jersey Mike's, which just-so-happens to carry my FAVE chips, Miss Vickie's BBQ chips!

We then hit up Soph's new favorite place on the planet: "The Picasso"

Sophia slid, glided, flopped, bounced, and HEELY'd down the statue, as skateboarders and tourists took a break from it.  I'm seriously shocked that she didn't shimmy down it.

That wasn't enough art for us.  We booked it to the Art Institute for more.

Fact:  My parents got Harry a membership for this spot for his birthday.  You feel very VIP when you have that going for you!

Harry LOVES teaching her about worldly things, and when you're in the second largest museum in the country that houses original Van Gogh and Picasso, you have a ton to talk about.

We head home after getting some hot chocolate and meandering around downtown a bit.  The rest of Sophs visit can be summed up in two words:  IN PJs.  We hung out, watched some TV together, and stayed in PJs until she left yesterday afternoon.  We get to see her again this weekend, so we'll definitely do work on some baking and pumpkin-carving!:)

Harry and I, sporting PJs, enjoyed leftovers dinner (I think we have a streak going where we do this on Sunday evenings; whatever's in the fridge that's leftover is up for grabs) and Amy Schumer's HBO special from Saturday evening.  Quite a risky thing to watch while eating, I'll just say.  We're dare devils!

My leftovers dinner = chicken fried rice, brought to life with siracha sauce.

And speaking of PJs, I know I'm not alone here.

THE THING YOU NEED on a Monday...THIS *BRAIN HUG*.

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Have you ever put Nutella in/on something less-than-ordinary?  
-I think oatmeal might be the weirdest, but I've totes enjoyed it with some Saltines.  Desperate times happen.

Name some guilty pleasure training/running tunes!

QUICK:  Fave breed of puppy?
-Siberian Husky forever!  Although, that Corgi made my heart smile.

QUICKER:  Name one fruit you'll enjoy today!

The best word to describe...

It was about 58*F out, but kind of muggy.  Cool and drizzly usually means that I'm throwing on a light jacket over my sports bra.  I get hot QUICKLY when working out (no matter the training sesh -- cycling, running, weights, Yoga, etc.), so I under-dress most of the time.  THIS JACKET rocked my world in the Spring, and is making a return for the Autumn runs, as well.

Oh my gosh @ my lunch.  Sure, it looks bland as all getout, but sweet potato + brown rice & quinoa + turkey burger patty + Wholly Guacamole = my fave *not quick* lunch.  That sweet potato was in the microwave for like 15 minutes.

Did the Volleyball Coach thing...

Then head home for some downtime and some Simpsons.  I'll never get enough.  Dinner came, and since Taco Tuesday is a thing in our house, chicken tacos were on the menu.

More Simpsons and some snuggles, and my Tuesday was set.
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I wish motivation came as quick as a snap, and I can't possibly be the only person with this wish.  Sometimes, it comes overnight, after a terrific experience leading up to your goal, after seeing a friend reach their goals, etc.  Then other times, it's slow as a snail, inching every so slowly into your heart, soul, and noggin.  You read books, post your favorite quotes, you watch all of the right movies, you listen to the best tunes on the planet, to no avail.

Then, it comes.

When it hits you, what's the word you would use to describe it?  Is badassery involved?  Strength?  FIRE?  DESIRE?  Determined?!

For me, there is no other word to describe my motivation at its very best --

TENACIOUS.  

My motivation has some fire, mixed with compassion and determination.  When I consider my goals and my motivation is on the ups, I feel tenacious...hungry...persistent...about reaching them.

Let's forget about the actual act of setting goals for just a moment.  The training, the dedication, and the mindset you instill during the goal-reaching process is equally as important.

I'm especially reminiscent this week -- the Chicago Marathon is coming up, and that just plucks at my heart strings.  Remembering the tenaciousness that I felt, lived, breathed for such an amazing training cycle last year gets me so stoked for my upcoming events.  More on THAT later!<3

Thanks for the link-up, Deb!

If this got too real for you, then check out a *BRAIN HUG*.

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What word best describes your motivation?  

Meatless Monday, Taco Tuesday, Thirsty Thursday, Foodie or Fish Friday?  Do you and your significant other or friends *celebrate* foodie days?

Do you have Columbus Day off?  Anyone have three-day weekend plans, besides those of you rocking out the Chicago Marathon?  

(Actually) Back on Track.

The weather was so weird this past weekend here in the Chi.  Exhibit A:  A la Suzlyfe.  It's been overcast, cloudy, very cool, drizzly, and kind of BLEH.  Don't get me wrong; it's the best snuggle weather of my life.  BUT, the sun needs to come out every once in a while.  It really seems to affect everyone; even my fellow Teachers were dragging a bit yesterday.

I got up extra early and hit the gym for a Monday morning spin.  Since they built an LA Fitness DIRECTLY behind the school where I teach, I have no choice but to rock out a training sesh before work.  They don't have Spin classes on Mondays, so I have to dig deep and reminisce of my Spin Instructor days.  I generally throw on Pandora (80s Pop Cardio ------> YES) and just go with whatever song plays.

Some climbs, some fast flats, some sprint intervals, and some jumps later, I was done with my first workout of the day.

I never get tired of the brilliance of my students.  I'm teaching my first graders about shapes and manipulating our bodies.  I asked them to turn themselves into a square, and this is what some of them produced.<3

LUNCH.  And um...DELISH.  This might be my new most favorite thing to nom on during my workday when it's kind of yucky out.  It hit the spot, and made me feel cozy.

No matter how yucky it was outside, I hit the gym again for some weights and stability and core work.  HIT THAT BOSU HARD.

I have NOT been regularly lifting!  We'll talk about the bennies of keeping lifting in your training soon -- like this week.  I love adding the BOSU to some lifts.  It keeps things a little more exciting, and since I used to be in love with lifting HEAVY, I gotta spice things up when it comes to lifting light.:)

I did several exercises in a couple of circuits:
A: 3X 15 x step-ups, 12 x 12 BOSU side lunges, 12 x DB Hammer front raises, 12 x DB lateral raises, 15 x toe touches with 6.6 kg ball, 15 x squats with 6.6kg ball, 15 x military press on flat part of BOSU
B: 3X "Writing" the Alphabet with the BOSU, 1-minute Stability Ball "Pass Offs", 12 x DB double rows, 12 x 12 standing lunges with 6.6kg ball overhead

Doing these ------------------------> <3 <3 <3


Stability ball pass off, A.k.a. "Crazy Abs"!

Harry has been going to Monday evening classes for a few weeks, so I've got the house to myself on these night.  I hit up the grocery store after some dinner, sat down and stalked you guys for a while, then was ready for bed.  Two workouts + the goofy weather really got to me, but it sure was a fantastic day.
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*BRAIN HUG* for today!  It totes made me giggle.:)

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Do you regularly lift weights?  What kind and how often?

What's one of the coolest/funnest core exercises you do?

RANDOM:  Have you carved a pumpkin yet?!  

-We're going to carve ours the next time we see Sophs!

What day is your favorite day to train?

Beginning with a healthy base, and we're so annoying.

Happy Wednesday, BFFs!

Great news -- My base building has begun.  I am just about four weeks away from the start of marathon training, and I basically plan on following the same format that I did for my last marathon (a modified Higdon intermediate plan).  My training, as you know, has been less than desirable lately.  BUT, I feel rested, and I'm ready to get my mileage back up into the 25-30 mile range to comfortably enter mary training.

And?  I accidentally matched everything.  My headband was sparkly green, so there's that?

There's a dumb joke in here somewhere...

You know what I'm most excited about, though?  Really getting goal-oriented, and totally talking your eyeballs off about mileage and cross-training -- because that's what it's allllllllll about.  I'm clearly excited about so many things, and one of them is training in the fall/winter.  That'll be a first.  And hopefully a blast...y'all know how much I love running in the cooler and cold temps!  Like, a lot.:)
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So, did you see THIS?

Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaand, guilty.:)

And yeah.  This, too.

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And a blog post here wouldn't be complete without something food related, so here ya' go.  The best idea I've ever seen in my life.  *BRAIN HUG*

And we should all avoid negativity.  Get that out of your life, yo.

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Well, Runner?  What else do we do that annoys people that wasn't on the list?

Who's with me on the cupcake sammich?  Because that's happening.  Like soon.

How many miles a week do you keep in your off-season, or just regularly?  

-I usually keep 20-25 mpw in the books.

PB FANS:  Is there EVER too much PB?  Or never enough?

I'm going to do the smart thing!

So, now that the weight has been lifted off my shoulders regarding dropping the 70.3 from the schedule, I look forward to January 2016 for my fourth marathon (first non-Chicago marathon).  Today, on a Tuesday, we're going to tip-toe over racing weight.

We all know (or should know, that is) that for the most part, people do not lose weight during marathon training.  After training for three marathons, I can tell you that that's totally true for me.  I didn't lose, nor gain, during 16 solid weeks of marathon training goodness.  And why?  Because this is me during OFF-SEASON:

It only gets worse when I'm running 40-50 miles a week + Yoga, swimming, and spinning.  So yeah, I eat...and not all of it is garbage, so don't get me wrong.  During my last training cycle, it was a lot of fruits and veggies, along with a good amount of beef and chicken, sometimes fish.  Pizza was there, too...often...but both Harry and I were pretty good about keeping it on the DL.

I don't know what my goal time for RnR Arizona is, to be quite honest.  I have a 3:59:56 to beat, even if it's by one second.  With that said, I do have a racing weight goal in mind.  This will require some pre-training loss.  I have about a month before the training cycle begins, so I'm going to do the smart thing for once and start working on my nutrition and weight goals early.

I read the book Racing Weight about five or six years ago.  A second edition, a quick start guide, recipes and other books have come out from Matt Fitzgerald since then (the first edition of the book slightly focuses on the success of Lance Armstrong; I can't say that's the reason for the second edition -- I just found it appropriate to point out).  I just downloaded the second edition onto my iPad (there will definitely be a book review).  The first edition was a fine read.  It really brought logic to a more lean *me* on race day.  I'm not going to lie, though:  I've never really worked on leaning out for race day before.  This will be a first for me.

 I was happy with my weight going into the 2014 Chicago Marathon, and I'm still close to that weight.  I just want to see what happens when I lean out a little more.:)  I don't have specifics to give, but this is a starting point for me, and I will certainly update as needed.

However, I am going to say this:  I am NOT going to obsess over the number on the scale.  That would be completely missing the point.  These aren't vanity pounds, and I will never preach unhealthy practices, especially when it comes to running and eating.  There is something to be said about runners and their diets, to the point that there is a ton of truth to this:

Again, my focus here is to be more efficient.  THIS is the point.

 THIS isn't the point, but it's a funny picture.:D  *BRAIN HUG*  Me, surprisingly, on rest days.  I have no idea why, but I am completely ravenous on days where I don't train.

I'm up and at 'em early today.  I need to get used to my rush-rush schedule again, as school starts up again in about three weeks.  YAAAAAAAAAAY!<3  So with that, I'm off for a shorty run.

Y'all have a gorgeous day!
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How do you prepare yourself for a tough training cycle?

Have you ever had a racing weight goal?  If so, do you think it made a difference?

QUICK:  What color are your running shoes?