East Coast Appetite

The Week in Workouts and Food 4/24-4/30

May 4, 2017May 4, 2017Posted in TrainingTagged 5K, Bronx, Running, Training1 Comment

4/24: I donated platelets, which turns out takes a lot more time than whole blood donation. I was starving during and after and finally got to Junior’s for a pastrami reuben, disco fries, and a shared slice of red velvet cheesecake. Ate it all so fast that no pictures exist.

4/25: I was fairly prepped and ready for an easy 3 on the treadmill since it was pouring outside, but stopped by the Book of Mormon lottery and was successful. So we scrapped the gym plan, stopped by City Kitchen for ilili box gyros and Dough donuts, then caught the show. Book of Mormon was great and made me psyched for Hamilton on June 3rd. So soon!

4/26: I made it home from a long work day in the Bronx (after spending Tuesday in Staten Island) and had plans to do a park loop but just could not bring myself to get out there. I put my GPS watch on and everything but had to take it off around 7 and admit defeat.

4/27: I had evening plans for Book Club instead of guided Speedwork, so I did an ‘easy’ loop around the park in the morning, about 2 hours later than usual. Holy humidity. 5.4 miles,

4/28: Rest day, but I was introduced to the below Austrian cookies (well, there’s no cookie part really, so not sure what they count as) and now have requests to bring them to Book Club and work. I’m going to try to pop them in the freezer to make mini Bluth’s frozen bananas.

4/29: Bronx Zoo Run for the Wild “5K”. So a 5K is the remaining distance I have left to PR this spring (10K, 10 Mile, Half Marathon, and 4 Miler done). I wisely decided not to make this race my attempt based on the humidity and the company and I’m so glad. The course was pretty boring at first (a lot of parking lot out and back in the first mile), then we saw some zebras and giraffes. There was a smattering of other animals. All the money raised went back into the zoo and conservation efforts.

My goal was to run at a pace that kept my heart rate down and didn’t get me too sweaty. We stayed conversational the whole time, but with high humidity and climbing temperatures, sweat was unavoidable.

The post-race spread was amazing (apples AND oranges, bagels AND muffins), then later there was pulled chicken BBQ sandwiches and ice cream. We dropped stuff off at the car then puttered around another good chunk of the zoo to see some lions, bears, and red pandas (oh my).

At night, I joined some teammates to cheer on the Red Hook Crit 5K and some of the bike races. It was so much fun to cheer this because the energy of the runners and the crowd was great (we were given cowbells and also brought our own). I could only stay for some of the women’s cyclists but witnessed the pileup right in front of us. I plan to make a full evening out of it next year (but will probably not run it if we’re being honest).

4/30: Church of the Sunday Long Run. I got lucky that Carly had joined and also wanted 10 miles in my pace range of 10:30. We ended up going a little slower then had to pause a couple times while I once again tried to figure out the best route from DUMBO to the Brooklyn Navy Yard. I accidentally cut the route a little short from going up Kent Ave. so we included 2/3 of a park loop and ended at Juice Press for our free juice.

Brooklyn Navy Yard — Somewhere way above and over from my hand is the Williamsburg Bridge

Total: 18.9 miles out of a planned 22-27.

The Week in Workouts & Food 4/17 – 4/23

May 1, 2017May 1, 2017Posted in ClassPass, Race Recaps, Running, TrainingTagged 4 Miler, Running, TrainingLeave a comment

4/17: Rest and recuperation after my half marathon the day before. I slumped home after work then did my taxes. I should have foamed rolled while doing them.

4/18: Cafe Boulud with a friend. We saw Chef Boulud making the rounds to the VIP tables and I had a lovely conversation with the sommelier about young reds and fish pairings. Every dish was amazing. I had gone to Bar Boulud after the NYC Marathon and stuffed myself with oysters, cheese, and terrine. Cafe Boulud was a step above.

4/19: PureBarre in the AM and restorative yoga in the PM. I really wanted to get a few miles done in the evening but my left Achilles tendon was a bit tender. It started drizzling as I left yoga (which got out late), so that was even more impetus to skip. I’ve never done two classes in a day before, but this was the last day in my ClassPass cycle. I took my membership back down to 1 a month because 5 will be too much while I’m trying to increase the volume of my mileage more into the 20’s.

4/20: Speed Training, Week 2. I ran a hair over 2 miles to get to the meeting spot, another 2 mile warmup, then 3 1-mile repeats around tempo pace (8:54, 9:03, 8:39). My splits were super uneven because I took the second one too easy in the first 800, but my third was closer to my 5K pace. Then I jogged up the hill to get to a pizza party.

4/21: Rest day, as my Fridays almost always are.

4/22: I slept in past 8am (a first for many weekends) then had to hustle to bake Funfetti cookies for a baby shower, so I missed my opportunity for a shakeout run.

4/23: NYRR Run As One 4 Miler in Central Park. I DNS this race last year and haven’t raced a 4 Miler since the Japan Day Run almost a year ago (thanks to DNS Al Gordon in February), so I was pretty sure it was time for a 4-mile PR. My friend Jay who is normally in the E corral ahead of me generously offered to pace me. I didn’t have enough time to do a warm-up mile, so my first mile was really slow. I was hoping to get it at 9 but it was pretty congested going up Cat Hill. I let loose on the 2nd mile, then tried to rein it in just a bit on the 3rd mile. Then Jay helped me go all out on the 4th mile. For the last 800, I saw sub-7 on my watch. Very exciting stuff!

Afterward, I waited for my friend who’s training for the Buffalo Marathon and we ran an extra 4 miles.

Total: 16.9 miles plus yoga and barre.

The Week in Workouts & Food 4/10 – 4/16

April 21, 2017April 21, 2017Posted in ClassPass, Running, Training1 Comment

4/10: Fly 45 at FlyWheel which I hadn’t been to since June 2016, before I put ClassPass on hold for marathon training. This was meant to be a recovery ride after Sunday’s 10K, but of course I tried to break my own old record. I ended up tying my past top power score but missing my distance record by over a mile. Guess I was too focused on the resistance and winning races.

4/11: NYRR Open Run in Brooklyn Bridge Park. I was ‘pacing’ my roommate for her third run ever. I got to see Elle and Bandit (!!), my favorite running pup. The course was altered due to police presence at Pier 1, so we did doubles of Pier 5, which ended up making it a little over 3.2. My roomie is getting faster (from 12 min/mile pace to 11in the last few weeks for 3 miles) and I’m so excited for her to race her next 5K. This ended up being the recovery run I needed and the weather was a glorious 69 degrees complete with a beautiful sunset.

4/12: PureBarre in the morning because clearly all the running and spin means it’s time for my abs to hurt. But seriously, this is a great workout because it activates my glutes and has built-in time for planks and push-ups. I frequently get the urge to do planks right around 2pm in the office when I’m wearing a pencil skirt, so it’s good to have an outlet outside of the gym.

4/13: Speed Training, Week 1. I did about 2 miles as a warm-up, then there was another 2 miles of warm-up built in. The workout was “just” 2 miles between threshold and tempo pace. That’s it, just 2. Well, I went out too fast downhill at my 5K pace then bonked on the second miles which had some very slight uphills. My allergies were not helping and I should have eaten something after work, but damn that second mile sucked. Good thing we did planks after the cool-down?

4/14: Rest Day. In a perfect world, Mondays and Fridays would be my rest days (but I would be running 4 of the other days and cross-training one of those other days). There would also be more grill your own Japanese BBQ and s’mores at Gyu-Kaku’s amazing happy hours.

4/15: I wanted to do a shakeout run before the half but didn’t. Hmm. At least the Brooklyn Botanic Garden is getting good!

4/16: Flushing Meadows Half: Oh god oh god why. Race report probably not on deck because I would not like to relive the heat and sun and the puking and the feeling of “wow this is already hard at mile 2”. This was supposed to be a redemption attempt for NYC Half to go sub-2 or a bit of a tune-up for Brooklyn Half. It was a mental and physical slog on an unseasonably warm day. Fortunately, I had the best one-man cheer squad/road crew and the occasional sighting of other teammates and friends. They took me from the DNF I was leaning toward to completion. And then I got a mango slush and dim sum afterward which really helped recovery.

Screen Shot 2017-04-21 at 8.01.07 AM — Someone pointed out that it looks like a flamingo sitting on a rock

I held my desired half pace for the first few miles but after 4, it all went downhill. I had to confer to see if I should keep going before the second loop (aka a couple miles around the lake then the final 5K which has more of the sights). The park was starting to get crowded with Easter celebrants and we were running alongside cars trying to park near the lake for a while which was a bit unnerving. Who expects to almost get doored during a race?

I started off without a visor and did NOT want any photos my my struggle, thank you very much

IMG_20170416_095449 — Doing much better on the last few miles and with a visor on

IMG_20170416_103024 — Trying to hustle to a strong finish

flushinghalfmedal — A hard-earned medal but only my 3rd worst half marathon time (and 4th best, I suppose)

Let’s hope Brooklyn Half goes a lot better.

Total: 23.3 miles and some spin and barre. Not enough foam rolling.

Non-Race Workouts & Food 3/20 – 4/9

April 15, 2017April 16, 2017Posted in ClassPass, Food, Race Recaps, Running, TrainingTagged 5K, ClassPass, Running, Training2 Comments

3/21: After running a PR in the NYC Half two days before, I did a few post-work recovery miles in LIC along the water, then met my friends for happy hour and a Cuban sandwich. General soreness and DOMS, but nothing too bad.

3/23: A couple easy miles to and from my friend’s place for catsitting.

3/24: I hosted my 3rd annual wine, cheese and charcuterie party, with the added bonus desserts of Cronuts, Nerds Jellybeans, and Peeps Oreos.

17492797_10155085488528490_1914024543726331532_o — Photo credit to Lori

3/25: Gaza 5K and Susan’s Goodbye. I ‘paced’ my roommate for here first ever 5K. It was a beautiful springish day. Turns out it was not a 5K, but a full loop of the park! But that’s ok because we had a great time and raised money for mental health services for Palestinian refugees.

17523576_10100227175425892_2229339226931714280_n — Photo Credit to Murray who won 1st Place Senior Male

I then added on a few extra miles after the race to say goodbye to a running club member the only way we know how: running and food. We ran to Bensonhurst to eat at Cafe Lily, which specializes in Korean-Uzbek food. We ate a feast and I got to take home some delicious kebab leftovers. I made the mistake of getting a huge taro bubble tea for the road and was so full it hurt. I’m wearing my favorite pair of tights ever, the cosmic dot print from Lululemon. These are more yoga/barre pants for me normally, but I wanted something festive.

17434504_10212673629466251_2776078672654794091_o — Photo credit to Jay

3/26-3/28: I had a sore throat on Saturday night, then got progressively more sick on Saturday. I’d hoped to do a medium run but skipped it. After a sleepless Sunday night, I had to miss work Monday. I finally obtained some Claritin D and felt much better but wisely took Tuesday off as well.

3/29: I went to Barry’s Bootcamp for the first time ever. The most popular times fill up super quickly on ClassPass, so my friend introduced me to Barry’s Buddies program where you get a free class for referring a friend (and the referee does as well).

We started on the floor for 10 minutes (that day was chest/back/abs), then 10 minutes on the treadmill for flat speed intervals. 10 minutes back on the floor, then 10 on the treadmill for hills. Then back to the floor for a quick 5 (my arms were dying), then a final 5 on the treadmill. I got up to about 8+ mph by the end but was afraid to take it fast because my form suffers. The treadmills were Woodways which were super nice (they also have those at Mile High Run Club).

Chaya is a semi-regular and is being coached by the instructor so we went back in after for a quick pic.

4/1: D.C. I finally got to try Astro Donuts & Fried Chicken but didn’t get to snap a photo of my beautiful Cherry Blossom decorated donut or my less attractive but delicious and juicy fried chicken. Or my gone in 30 seconds maple bacon donut.

After a couple of years of failing, we finally got to see the Kite Festival on a beautiful spring day. Ro’s friends had bought an octopus kite that we named and flew for over an hour.

I had dinner at Nando’s which is the 3rd time in as many DC trips and now sort of a tradition. Macho peas and cheeky bants.

4/2: Cherry Blossom 10 Mile. Race report to come!

4/6: Spin at SYNC Studio again and Sweetgreen after. I got the Beets Don’t Kale my Vibe (sigh) bowl and it was amazing.

4/7: Finally went back to Rolf’s for drinks with my work team to take in the Christmas lights and belatedly celebrate a holiday birthday.

4/8: Storm King day trip. I had wanted to get a shakeout run in but just wasn’t feeling it. We walked over 6 miles and saw so many great pieces of art.

Prior, we had lunch at Brothers BBQ and I got the pulled pork sandwich when I read that they had North Carolina roots. It did not disappoint. The sauce had the right amount of vinegar, the cole slaw was plentiful, and my side of collard greens was full of ham.

4/9: UAE 10K. Race report to come!

My mileage wasn’t as high as I would have liked, but overall these were some fairly solid weeks of fitness and food.

NYC Half 2017 Recap

April 11, 2017April 11, 2017Posted in Race Recaps, RunningTagged Half Marathon, NYC Half, nyrr8 Comments

I started drafting this post immediately after the race (3pm from my couch, recuperating with bagels), but left the ‘Intro’ portion blank. It’s definitely hard to write about races (and running in general) sometimes when things don’t go exactly your way, but it’s time to push it out there anyway since I’ve officially done two races after the NYC Half anyway. And yes, my Mom noticed its absence. This will be woefully short on photos because my few MarathonFoto shots aren’t great.

Fun fact: This was my FIRST half marathon EVER in 2015. The 2017 iteration was my 6th half.

I went to the expo the day before fairly early and grabbed my shirt (long sleeve this year in a great bright blue) and bib. I had just stocked up on Gus at Jackrabbit during my Ghost 9 shopping spree, so didn’t need to linger too much. I did grab pre-made pace bracelets for 1:55 (ha! just saving for another time), 2:00, and 2:05. My A Goal: Sub 2:00, B Goal: Under 2:02:11 aka a new PR, C Goal: Under 2:05 just to prove that I was in fact in shape enough to get under 2 next time.

After a lot of hemming and hawing the night before on temperature, I chose to wear my Sugoi Subzero tights (rather than the Midzero ones, just in case we did get some flurries after all since they are somewhat more water resistant), my PPTC short-sleeve t-shirt, and my blue Lululemon Go the Distance jacket. I pinned my bib onto my pants since I wasn’t sure if I would end up keeping my jacket on the whole time. I knew not having the red shirt be super visible would make it harder for cheerers to spot me, but there are enough people out on the course that I wasn’t too worried. I also had a neat NYRR National Running Day buff that I was planning to wear around my neck but ended up using as an ear warmer/headband. The finishing touches were some sweet homemade arm warmers made of men’s socks from the pack I bought for the NYC Marathon last year as well as my beloved Lululemon Run With Me gloves, which were a Christmas gift from a Secret Santa friend.

I got to Central Park with more than enough time to spare before dropping my stuff off at bag check by 6:50AM. It was so cold before and at the start and I was very lucky that a teammate had some extra disposable hand warmers to slip into my gloves.

Miles 1 – 3: It took a full 2 miles for me to feel my toes. Cat Hill was over and done with pretty much immediately in the first mile, then you get to enjoy the rolling hills on the East side of the park. It was around here that I saw my first Golden Retriever of the morning and started counting dogs. According to NYRR, my time at the 5K was 29:00 exactly, but my watch was around 27:30 or so.

Miles 4 – 6: They had to change the course a little bit this year because of construction near the finish, so they added an up-and-down to 113th street during the out-and-back along 110th St. I hit the 10K in pretty good shape and realized that I had hit a new 10K PR of 57:42. Yay! I pulled my tube sock arm warmers out from under my jacket and tossed them into Central Park. My dog count ended unofficially at 50 dogs because I was losing my mental focus a bit around #40.

Miles 6-10: This section includes the exit from Central Park, the very surreal experience of running through down Broadway and through Times Square, then the move along 42nd St and down the West Side Highway. I got to see my teammate Brittany cheering at 50th St. which was such a nice boost.

I ate 2 salted margarita Shot Blocks around mile 8 and chased them with water. I saw the PPTC cheer squad around mile 9.5 and went in for much-needed high fives. Thanks, guys!

Miles 10-12: These were the worst miles of the whole race but still faster than the frozen first mile. It’s not that the wheels fell off entirely, but my pace slowed, my feet were tired and my form suffered. I caught myself awkwardly straddling the main buckle in the road as I ran and couldn’t really seem to stay in a straight line on the crown of the road. My breathing never got raggedy, but I was worried that it would if I tried to push the pace. I had started just in front of the 2:00 pace group, then they passed me, then I passed them, but this is where they passed me for good and I knew I couldn’t keep up. My race plan had been to negative split to make up for the slower hills in the first half, but I couldn’t drop the hammer as much as I had wanted. I knew I was 40ish second off from 2:00 but it was just not happening.

Screen Shot 2017-04-10 at 10.34.23 PM — This face says it all

Screen Shot 2017-04-10 at 10.33.31 PM — Finally seeing the finish

Miles 12-13.1: Sweet relief! The tunnel felt great, if a little longer than before, but the uphill finish shredded me. My legs would just not move faster. Final time of 2:00:49.

Screen Shot 2017-04-10 at 10.24.25 PM — Mile 7 through Times Square is way, way off

In summary, I missed my A Goal got a sweet new PR. My 9:13 minutes per mile pace means that my best Half pace is now faster than my recorded NYRR paces for the 10 Mile, 10K, 5 Mile, and 4 Mile. Ok, so I haven’t raced as many of those, but this is still an exciting start to Spring 2017 racing season. I’m trying to race all of those at or below a 9 minute mile. But I did get a new PR and nabbed some unofficial 10 mile and 10K PRs during this race, so felt like it was a strong foundation.

Mileage Etc Recaps 2/20 – 3/19

March 18, 2017March 18, 2017Posted in ClassPass, Running, TrainingTagged Mile, Running, Training1 Comment

Well, I did it again. I spent more time running and less time writing. This is a good thing overall, though. Also, this entry is including the ASSUMPTION that I’ll be running the NYC Half on March 19th. Fingers crossed, knocking on wood, etc.

2/20 – 2/26: 18.8 miles, which was a definite cutback plan from the prior week’s 24 miles. I wanted to squeeze in more but I DNS that Al Gordon 4 miler on 2/25 and was bedridden (with a hangover, stupidly) all day, so missed all those miles and the to and from. Lifted a little with a friend at the gym but had to skip kickboxing class. Serious Al Gordon/missed running opportunity FOMO that haunted me for days.

My penance however was a very cool long run with some teammates down to DUMBO to see one of the new pieces of public artwork, which is of course right along the north edge of the park squeezed next to brand new luxury condos. The sign lights up and changes to different colors if you tweet at it and also does a traffic report for the bridges every 10 minutes. None of these tricks are captured in the below photos.

I also baked funfetti donuts during my lost hungover day to bring to book club:

2/27 – 3/5: 29.3 miles or 5 hours and 9 minutes of running according to Strava. I wish I had hit 30 miles even, but am mainly proud that I squeezed in 5 days of running, plus a class of Total Body Conditioning in lieu of Kickboxing.

I received my order from RunningWarehouse.com that included a pair of the Brooks Launch 3 (to be my new speed shoe), a Brooks hat (free with shoe purchase and I now have 4 hats too many), and a Moving Comfort Vixen Sports Bra (only $20 and so comfy). I tested out the Launches for a 2-mile morning jaunt and they felt pretty good. To kill time between work and a Yelp event, I stopped by my local Jackrabbit and ended up picking up new gels and chews since I finally ran out of the last batch I bought before the marathon. I obviously have only done a handful of double-digit runs or other excursions requiring gel fuel since then (checking Strava weekly mileage again…yep). I had tried and failed to find Brooks Ghost 8s in my size online for weeks, but it looks like I missed my shot when they were available in January, so I ponied up for a pair of the new Ghost 9 while at Jackrabbit, figuring that at least I’m supporting a localish business in the process (even though they just got bought by a CA-based investment firm). They also have a rewards program, so I hit the next level for $20 off my next purchase. Once the 9’s go on sale, I will try to stock up wherever I can. I’m very pleased with the colorway of these since my 8’s had a bit too much hot pink in them.

I did an 11 mile long run by myself in very windy sub-20 degree weather on the 4th so I feel like I now have the mental fortitude to tackle whatever the NYC Half throws at me. I ended this one at Starbucks and tried their new Cascara latte. It was delightful and much needed since I ran from 2pm-4pm, which is normally my prime coffee time.

Stopped by the Brooklyn Museum’s First Saturday’s and checked out the Georgia O’Keeffe and Marilyn Minter exhibits. Then crushed a cochinita pibil burrito at Al Atodero. The bartender said that I murdered it, so I just had to casually drop that I had run 11 miles that day.

Then on the 5th, I met up with a teammate for a recovery run in the afternoon since the morning was still quite windy and cold. I was only planning on 5.5 but tacked on a little extra to hit 7 when we ran into another teammate. Almost stopped by Starbucks again, but had restocked my coffee supplies by then.

3/6 – 3/12: 17 miles plus a million other workouts. PureBarre Monday morning, StrongLifts Series A at the gym Tuesday night, spin class with a friend Thursday evening, then fascia release/stretching class Saturday after a shorter run. I skipped kickboxing.

7 of the miles were from a Wednesday night run for International Women’s Day. I chose to do the longer route and chatted with some great ladies the whole time. We ran to Butter & Scotch (ahem from my New Year’s Day amazing brunch AND that cake recipe I baked with friends) and this time, I got a slice of the birthday cake blended into a vanilla milkshake. Love a good cake shake.

17157556_10158355487850553_5530551223868665703_o — Waiting for the run to begin

17159200_10155042810211870_2546216734423144090_o — Rapturous about my cake shake

3/13 – 3/19: 6.4 miles before the NYC Half (race report to come), including a 1 Mile PR! New PR is 7:19, down from 7:24 at the 2015 Fifth Avenue Mile. I had about one mile warmup before trying it on an indoor track that’s 200m (so, 8 laps). My right shoe came untied after the 3rd lap, but I decided to just hang on. I was gasping for breath on the last 2 laps, but I guess it was worth it. They’re having this particular race again in 2 weeks and while I would love to whittle my time down, my calves have been tight for a couple of days after, so I don’t think it’s worth the risk right before the Cherry Blossom 10 Mile. I did about a mile cool-down though my Garmin was totally off inside.

I officially withdrew from kickboxing even though I had only 2 classes left. The mid-week mid-day workout just wasn’t working for me and my calves were still tense from the Mile.

I went to the NYC Half expo and OMG it’s really happening.

See y’all on the other side.

Weekly Mileage (and food) recaps 1/16 – 2/19

February 21, 2017March 9, 2017Posted in Running, TrainingTagged Running, Training5 Comments

After the dessertapalooza the first two weeks of 2017 as mentioned in my last post (14 desserts in 14 days), I’ve tried to scale up the mileage while cutting down on some of the food. But some weeks have been a bit ‘off’. As you can see from the mileage below, I’d have a really good ramping up week then way too much of a cutback week. I think it helps for me to not get too obsessed with weekly mileage and think more of everything as part of the same cycle, but I do want to be more steady. It’s difficult to write about the runs/days/weeks that didn’t go well and can sometimes feel a little embarrassing to know that your mileage is so low. But for the most part, I haven’t been Instragramming much this year and doubt that anyone is pulling up my Strava and checking out my mileage. I’m trying not to fall into any comparison traps.

Week of 1/16 – 1/22: 17 miles (including Fred Lebow Half at long run pace)

Week of 1/23 – 1/29: 4.5 miles (treadmill workout)

Week of 1/30 – 2/5: 20 miles (including long run of 8 miles)

Week of 2/6 – 2/12: 5.5 miles (Mile High Run Club’s The Distance class)

Week of 2/13 – 2/29: 24 miles (long run of 8 miles, MHRC The Distance, race of 3.33 miles)

I had 2 different weekends with no long runs, one because I felt sick/lost my voice (January 28th and 29th) and one because my plans later in the day took precedence on Saturday the 11th, then I sat out on some pretty terrible weather on Sunday the 12th. The NYC Half is now only 4 weeks away, so that certainly puts my rear in gear a bit. I’m planning long runs of 10, 11, and 12 miles the next few weeks and am running the Al Gordon 4 Miler on the 25th. I’m shooting for a PR, which should be doable based on my 3.33 performance and 2 year old PR of 36:54.

Chocolate Chip Marshmallow cookies baked during the Super Bowl

I had some fun non-running workouts, including kickboxing at work (the instructor likes to end with burpees), Pure Barre, and good old-fashioned strength training. Amazing how one’s core can still be sore days later.

The Weeks in Workouts and Food 1/2-1/8 and 1/9-1/15

January 17, 2017February 18, 2017Posted in ClassPass, Desserts, Running, Training1 Comment

I had a great start to my running and fitness in 2017 with that afore-mentioned New Year’s Day treadmill run (right after seeing Star Wars Rogue One which got me inspired to get buff and rock climb and be able to hang from ledges while saving the day). Then I predictably have fallen off a bit. I ended up not racing the first couple of weeks, but still have the Fred Lebow Half to look forward to on 2/22/16. I plan to run but not race it, but haven’t decided on a pace at all. Somewhere between 9:30-10:45 for sure. TBD.

My real next goal race (so far, 10K TBD) is the NYC Half on March 19th. I’m following a modified Hal Higdon Novice 2/Intermediate 1 plan and trying to increase my mileage since I’m technically already at week 4 of 12 as of writing this on 1/15/16. Eek!

Some two-week highlights:

Monday 1/2: An amazing brunch at Butter & Scotch, where I spent part of New Year’s Eve. Their biscuits are just as amazing as their cakes, cookies, and cocktails. I had the fried chicken sandwich, pictured below with a side salad. We got the first slice of (caramel apple) pie of the New Year, so it was on the house. Even better! Evening PureBarre class. It was easier to hold plank the whole time, but push-ups were still a struggle.

Wednesday 1/4: Ramen Shack for lunch. I have never had a better soft-boiled egg in my life (or in my ramen). I’ll be a repeat visitor here for sure.

Thursday 1/5: SpeedWork; 10 x 200 m repeats. Not going to lie, I was very excited about this workout. I didn’t bother using my watch because I knew I would mess them up between the lap-stop and the 200 m recovery periods. Reyes Deli tacos for dinner afterward, which of course I have no pictures of.

Friday 1/6: Only including this for the dessert count. Got the trio at Luke’s Lobster, so 1/2 each of a shrimp roll, crab roll, and lobster roll. But then we went wild at Billy’s Bakery at closing and got 2 types of cake and a banana nutella cupcake, most of which was consumed while watching Shark Tank and Don’t Think Twice.

Saturday 1/7: My best day of running and food for the year so far. 8 miles run, which included 1 solo mile, 2 with a friend in the park, 4 along the trails around the park in the increasing snow, and 1 cool-down mile home. Then friends came over and we baked an Atlantic Beach Pie. THEN I had the amazing porchetta and duck banh mi at Mekelberg’s with some beer. Then cocktails at Dick & Jane.

Monday 1/9: Tower Barre at A*Line Pilates, a new-to-me studio in Carroll Gardens. It was a neat mix of tower pilates to start, then the more traditional lower body barre moves at the end. The studio was beautiful and intimate and I loved the instructor. Definitely coming back here for pilates, even though I’m at beginner level.

Tuesday 1/10: I ran, but only 2 miles and ended at Whole Foods. I bought a FarmBox from work for the first time ($15 for a big bag of produce, mostly local and in season purchased from smaller farms). This was enough to make a seitan-tomato-brown rice-kale-feta grain bowl that night then kabocha squash red curry with kale on Wednesday.

Thursday 1/12: SpeedWork was 4 x 800 repeats. I took the first one too hard (3:51), then almost kept it up for the second (3:56) before needing to pull over at the 550m mark on the 3rd and try not to ralph. Whoops! Major positive split for the last one as well (4:13). I was overdressed and it was very humid, which did not help matters. The good news is I had a delicious fried chicken sandwich with tots and fried macaroni & cheese balls for dinner after at the new Gnarly Eats.

Friday 1/13: PureBYK 45 minute spin class at BYKLYN. It was too late to cancel this without getting charged after my speed debacle Thursday night, so I took it pretty easy with the resistance compared to the previous time. I then wolfed down a barbacoa burrito from Chipotle for lunch and donated blood in the afternoon before having a Peter Pan donut and dinner at Hail Mary. Had to try the deep-fried burrata and their 3-layer birthday cake…

Saturday 1/14: Since I was baking Butter & Scotch’s 3-layer birthday cake with friends the next day. This was a lot of work, from cutting up the butter to making a meringue to assembling the 3 layers, plus mixing up a cream cheese frosting. I definitely need a third cake pan because my pie dish caused one layer to be slightly misshapen. But after some refrigeration, this really came together and was a success. Restorative yoga afterward at Shambhala Yoga.

Sunday 1/15: 10 miles along the Bay (Sheepshead), beach (Manhattan and Brighton-adjacent), and boardwalk (Coney Island) with a running club friend. I felt pretty good considering I hadn’t covered this distance since the marathon. We kept the pace in high 10’s and low 11’s which was made easier by all of the ice and snow on the sidewalks and boardwalks. Miraculously, neither of us fell! We then got Roll N Roaster for lunch; classic roast beef sandwiches, cheese fries, and a lemonade for me. I’ve been wanting to hit up this spot for years. Then second brunch at Building on Bond where I got a full English Breakfast.

Dinner was at Chumley’s where my friend who knows the chef and I ordered half the menu.

Total miles: 12 miles and 1 class the week of 1/2-1/9, 16 miles and 3 classes the week of 1/10-1/15. AKA totally not ready to race Fred Lebow, but a start to my half marathon base.

Total desserts: 14? There was a donut I didn’t mention, but no ice cream these two weeks.

The Weeks in Workouts and Food 12/12-1/1

January 3, 2017January 3, 2017Posted in ClassPass, TrainingTagged Running1 Comment

Yeah, that’s right, I’m squeezing in the final 3 weeks of the year together. December absolutely flew by in preparation for the holidays and being busy at work and socially. Below are some fitness and food highlights, with many gaps. There were quite a few mornings where I skipped a run and regretted it and others where the biting cold took away my desire entirely. My weekly mileage is still lower than where I’d like it to be by anywhere from 5-10 miles a week. I got back into ClassPass but struggled to squeeze in all 5 classes by the end of the cycle on the 20th. Foodwise, I splurged hard and gained a couple of pounds to show for it. You know, the usual post-marathon eating like you’re still training for a marathon but your mileage is 1/3 of what is was.

12/13: Mile High Run Club High 45. This was my first time not doing The Distance, but I still squeezed in over 4 miles. Different instructors have different ways of describing the faster paces (the jump between half marathon pace to 10K pace to 5K pace to flat out sprint), so that took some adjusting. Overall, I ran faster than in The Distance to compensate for the lesser mileage and felt great. I wandered around in a hungry daze after and ended up at Panera in Union Square to grab a bacon egg and cheese on an asiago bagel. ClassPass Class #2 of the cycle.

12/14: Restorative yoga. This is my favorite kind of yoga because we usually do a few sun salutations (maybe) but then hold poses like pigeon for longer, then end in an extended savasana. Works for me. ClassPass Class #3.

12/15: Speedwork Week 4. Warmup was cut a little short because I was late. 1000m repeats x 6. I have them down as 3:04, 3:01, 2:57, and 2:52, but these could be off because I am still trying to get my lap-stop pressing of my watch down. Cool down nice and easy but my friend Chun squeezed one last super fast 200 out of me.

12/16: PureBYK at BYKlyn, which I hadn’t been to since before marathon training began. They added monitors to measure your RPMs and caloric burn, which is a nice addition. I’m excited to get back here more often. ClassPass Class #4.

12/17: I was planning to race the NYC Runs Cocoa Classic 10K on Roosevelt Island, but it was canceled due to snow. I was shooting for a PR, so I was bummed but also somewhat relieved. The snow turned to cold rain with a strong wind by 9am and I definitely wouldn’t have wanted to run in that (or have the volunteers and race staff stand around in it). They gave us a discount on future races, but no 10Ks that immediately appeal to me.

The good news is that I went back to Emily (3rd time in 2 months) and tried two new-to-me pizzas.

12/18: Cookie baking extravaganza! I made Funfetti cookies then took a stab at my childhood gingerbread cookie recipe (my Mom copied it down from a neighbor). Thanks to my trusty stand mixer (thanks, Carla!), the dough turned out perfect. Then my friends helped cut them into mitten, snowmen, and the letter H shapes.

12/19: My first PureBarre class in 4 months and my 5th ClassPass of this cycle, which I barely squeezed in. Needless to say, I was shaking during a lot of the seat work. Then my abs were sore for 3 days afterward. This was a much-needed welcome back to the barre.

12/20: Soft Swerve for purple ube ice cream with mochi and toasted coconut in a black chocolate cone. Yum. They can do a vanilla swirl with the ube and also make matcha and black sesame flavors that can be swirled together (similar to Taiyaki). I loved the crunchiness of the toasted coconut so much, plus they spooned some into the bottom of the cone before adding the ice cream.

12/22: Speedwork Week 5. 1.7 mile warm up to the track, then 6 x 800m. Roughly 4:10, 4:03, 4:11, and 3:59. I had lamb vindaloo as a late lunch/early dinner and it was not sitting very well, but I held it together (barely).

12/23: I had off work and felt recovered enough from speedwork, so I did a late morning outer loop of Prospect Park plus the to and from was 5.7 miles total. I mistakenly thought doing the outer loop would add on more mileage and that I would hit 6 even, but I was very wrong. I didn’t look at my watch for the first 3 miles and turns out I was taking them a little too fast.

12/26: At-home strength workout with resistance bands. I did a warmup, some planks, and push-ups then tried the recommended balance and lower body strength workout with the bands. I had been hoping to fit in a spin class, but it was waitlist-only when I checked Christmas night.

12/27: 4 miles in Richmond around Belle Isle. I tried a couple new-to-me trail sections that were smaller or steeper. It was 60 degrees when I started (hello, shorts!) then it sprinkled/drizzled for the last 2 miles. There were lots of families with kids and dogs out, plus a few other runners. Major positive splits here! I’m planning to run more along the river next time I’m back in Richmond, especially in preparation for the Richmond Half (fall 2017 races still TBD but 90% sure that one is my goal race).

Then I ate super local oysters.

12/31: 5.5 miles along Brooklyn Bridge Park, not looking at my watch. Which of course means I was going too fast. 1.5 miles of this are downhill, then BBP is pretty flat, then of course one must go uphill to return anywhere out of DUMBO. But by the 4th mile, I had an endorphin spree and was feeling great.

1/1/17: 3 miles on the treadmill at the gym watching football, then strength and core work. I skipped a morning race in the park due to a late New Year’s Eve festivities, so I’m really glad I got a run in to kick off 2017.

2016 Running Wrap-Up and 2017 Goals

December 31, 2016December 31, 2016Posted in ClassPass, Musings, RunningTagged RunningLeave a comment

2016 is almost over and I’m about to head out the door for its last run, but I just wanted to do a quick review post. Also, I baked a lot this year and ate a lot of ice cream.

Q1: I started off the year in physical therapy, still unable to run without significant bursitis pain. I was taking a fair amount of barre and spin classes to try and keep my strength and cardio fitness up. I started a new job February 1st with slightly earlier hours, which definitely affected my desire for morning runs (once I could actually run), but which is otherwise great. I baked a LOT of cookies with all of that indoor time after getting a stand mixer in January and one of the Momofuku Milk Bar cookbooks as a Christmas gift (then buying the other for myself as well as a cookie dough scoop). And my first sour cream coffee cake. In March, I added some elliptical miles to the treadmill that were pain-free and figured I could try the Cherry Blossom 5K in April (since I couldn’t do the 10 Miler).

Q2: Cherry Blossom 5K went well (and we had a great DC weekend), so I slowly started upping my mileage. I skipped the Run As One but made it through the Japan Run and Healthy Kidney 10K. I went hiking in Shenandoah National Park and explored my old Virginia stomping grounds a bit. In mid-June, I ran a 10K PR at the Mini 10K. I kept baking and added Ooey Gooey Butter Cake to my repertoire. Oh, and my trivia team won a trip to Vegas. Said goodbye to Carla who moved to Chicago.

Q3: In July, I started marathon training. My ratio of parties I attended over parties I was invited to started to rapidly decline as I chose rest on the weekends before and after long runs. I met a lot of nice people in my running club during the weekend long runs. I dropped my ClassPass allotment from 10/month to 5/month then finally put it on hold in September after I struggled to get even 5 classes in. I ran a 5K PR at the Al Goldstein Speed Series in August, but wasn’t 100% sure it was a PR until I knew my time for sure and checked my old one from Memorial Day 2015. I went rock climbing weekly for over a month. I took trips to Vegas and Cancun and did my long runs on the treadmill, plus a quick trip to Richmond. I went hiking at Breakneck Ridge and managed to lose my train ticket on the ride up, but did not fall while hiking. Said Goodbye to Gabby as she moved to London.

My first take on the Fruity Pebbles version of Cornflake cookies

Q4: I ran the NYC Marathon! I also ran a Half Marathon PR in early October, then a 5-mile PR in late November, but 90% of my thinking and running effort was centered around the marathon. I ran my longest runs ever in October in preparation for the marathon and kept being struck by “I can’t believe I’m going to do this!”. I traveled to Chicago, DC, and then Richmond VA for the holidays and ran (outside, along a body of water) in each city.

Bib Pickup with Brittany who was volunteering

Chicago at night after Chun ran the marathon there

Pausing During my DC 11-mile Taper Run from the Jefferson Memorial

2017 Running and Fitness Goals:

PR in the 5K, 10K, 10 Mile, and Half Marathon. I’m running two 10 Milers in the spring (plus maybe Bronx in the fall) and have only done it once before in fall 2015 while injured, so I feel pretty good about my chances for that. I’d like to run a sub-2 hour Half Marathon, ideally at the NYC Half in March. I was hoping for that 10K PR in mid-December but the race was cancelled. I’ll see how I feel about scheduling a local 5K, but my current PR includes Zoo Hill, so I will look for a flat one.
Move up a corral in the NYRR corral system. I’m in G, but should be able to get to F, hopefully by the middle of the year.
Continue speed training classes as long as I remain uninjured.
Use all of my ClassPass classes every cycle, no excuses. Put it on hold again if I have to because I refuse to waste the money.
My 2015 strength goal that fell by the wayside in 2016 was to be able to do a pull-up. I feel like I’m further away than ever from this, but I think I can start to work toward it again.