Monday again, huh? Even with a 3 day weekend, the weekend wasn’t long enough. I’m counting down the days until vacation…
Friday was a holiday around here, so Beer Geek had the day off of work. We both got up early and got out workouts in and then Beer Geek suggested we head to a local beer bar mid-afternoon. Time to chat with my husband + good beer? Yes, please! (One of us doesn’t understand the concept of summer beers. Oh, yeah, that’s me.)
After a few beers and some amazing nacho fries (too bad I forgot a picture LOL), we headed home and fed the kids dinner and then all crashed early.
Saturday was another early morning – I had speed work on the calendar. It was warm and muggy and I felt super gross by the time I was done. But, I’m happy to say I got it done, despite having to do it in my hilly neighborhood instead of a track.
Then Jones and I headed out for our monthly gig of caring for the cats at a local Petsmart. We volunteer with a rescue group and we go in and clean the cages of the cats that are waiting for adoption. This week, there were a bunch of cute little kittens. Boy, were they high energy! It made me appreciate our mellow cat.
Next it was time to head out to spend the 4th of July with Beer Geek’s family. As usual, it was fun to hang out and I ate way too much. Also, Jones is as tall as me now (I was wearing heels…)
I made a super yummy (and easy) pasta salad that I’m sharing with you.
- 1 lb box of pasta (rotini, elbow or bowtie), cooked and drained
- 3/4 C Basil Parmesan salad dressing (I used Target brand)
- 1 can sliced black olives
- 8 oz asiago cheese (I used Sartori’s Basil Olive Oil Asiago), cut into tiny cubes
- 1 red or yellow pepper, diced
- 1 box cherry tomatoes, quartered
- 1/4 C grated parmesan cheese
- Optional:
- artichokes
- fresh basil
- pepperoni
- scallions
- Cook, drain, and rinse pasta with cool water. Mix all ingredients except tomatoes with the salad dressing. Once ingredients are well mixed, gently mix in tomatoes.
- Chill for an hour to allow flavors to mix. If desired, add more salad dressing or parmesan right before serving.
Sunday was a mellow day. I slept in because I didn’t have to run and then spent the morning on some house chores and hit the grocery store. After lunch, it was time for a ride on my stationery bike. (You can all be shocked that I cross trained…) It sits in the playroom, which is not on our central AC, so I was a sweaty mess by the time I got done.
Soon I’ll be getting the playroom cleaned up and then I get to have a new treadmill. Because it was a porch in its past life, I need to figure out how to deal with the slight slope to the floor. Hopefully we can find a treadmill with a way to adjust the bottom.
Our final Sunday fun was to attend the Women’s World Cup soccer game at a local cinema and draft house. OMG! That game was absolutely amazing. So exciting and the kids were over the moon! (I couldn’t even get a non-blurry pic LOL)
We have a crazy week ahead of us with afternoon camps, cello lessons, soccer practices, social events, and oh, that small thing called a job, in addition to marathon training. Looks like I’ll be embracing my inner morning runner again.
Last week’s training was just about perfect:
Monday: 6 miles at 10:42.
Tuesday: 6 miles at 10:49.
Wednesday: 6 miles at 11:03. I was really tired on this run and I admit I questioned my choice of the Hanson’s training plan. My legs pretty much felt like lead, but I still managed to get through it.
Thursday: 8 miles at 10:58, which was only a few seconds faster than my goal pace. I was exhausted at the end and wondering if I could manage the last two runs of the week.
Friday: 6 miles at 10:58. I actually tried to run this a bit slower, but my legs had regained some of their normal bounce.
Saturday: 8 x 600 at a 9:00 pace. I rocked this! I was totally convinced I wasn’t capable of doing it, but I was actually a little faster than planned!
Sunday: I’ve never been so happy for a rest day in my life. Seriously.
This week includes increased mileage and my first 6 mile tempo run. It’s definitely going to be an interesting week.
Don’t forget to join us tomorrow for Tuesdays on the Run! You can write a post with your social media links AND you can also directly drop 1-2 social media links. Make sure to follow some new people!
I’m linking up with Tara at Running ‘n’ Reading, Erin at Her Heartland Soul, Tina Muir, and Deborah at Confessions of a Mother Runner.
I would soooo help with the treadmill positioning if you’d come make pasta salad for my visiting parents??
Or breakfast. Or anything. #mamahatescooking 🙂
CarlaRunzWhenChased recently posted…Im your second best friend.
LOL, we’d do well together – I love to cook.
Looks like a great weekend! We just broke our Nordic Track and got a commercial grade Precor treadmill. It can literally power a plane I think! Put it on an uphill slope and you’ll be good to go for flat races!
emma @ be mom strong recently posted…How We Are Cutting Back on Sugar
Which one did you get? I’m still trying to choose…
Hey lady! Thanks for joining meatless monday today! I love seeing your face on there!!! That sounds lovely, and perfect for marathon training. Glad yours is going well, and as yucky as those muggy runs can be, you feel so tough when you finish….when the sweat is washed off haha. Thanks for joining, have a wonderful monday 🙂
Tina Muir recently posted…Meatless Monday- Feta and Grape Green Salad
I’m going to try to come up with recipes a bit more often.
I make a pretty tasty pasta salad too! My family always requests it for get togethers.
Looks like a great week of training for you!
Wendy@Taking the Long Way Home recently posted…Race recaps: My threesome weekend
Feel free to share the recipe…
Basil is my fav herb! Looks like a tasty dinner or lunch 🙂
Athletic Avocado recently posted…Paleo Dark Chocolate Chip and Orange Cookies + Thrive Market Review
I know – I love basil.
Yay for perfect training! Hope you’re liking Hansons – I’ve heard of it but never tried it out.
And YUM I need more basil and pasta in my life.
melissa recently posted…The Fourth in Photos (My Long Weekend Update)
I wish I’d had fresh basil in the house. That would have made it even more amazing.
I love that you and the boys volunteer with the cat rescue!
Great job nailing week #2.
Pam recently posted…A Four-Day Weekend Recap: Fourth of July Edition
Jones is a huge fan of animals, so it’s a good way to fill his school’s volunteer requirement.
I love a great pasta salad and this one is super easy! Thanks for joining us for Meatless Monday today. Have a great week
Deborah Brooks @ Confessions of a Mother Runner recently posted…Hawaiian Pineapple Acai Bowl-Meatless Monday
It was really tasty and only took a few minutes to throw together after the pasta was cooked.
What a crazy game! My jaw was on the floor after the first 20 minutes.
Lesley recently posted…Monday Musings 7/6
I know, it was so cool!
Nice job on training! Busy weekend.
The game was great, we hadn’t planned on watching it but got sucked in right after Carli’s 3rd goal. Amazing athletes.
M @readeatwriterun recently posted…Weekend Update July 4-5, 2015
I know! I was with a bunch of soccer boys and they were jumping and screaming and cheering. Totally made the game even better.
Erika, I can’t believe you had a local movie theater that showed the World Cup; that is so cool! What a fun way to watch!! Um, I love drinking beer but, sadly, I am not that familiar with this special “breed” of summer beers – if I drink beer in the summer, isn’t that summer beer? HA! You are doing great with your training; when I switched to doing three days in a row (M-W, day off on Thursday, then run again Friday & Saturday), it was a bit of a transition (read: exhausting). I definitely look forward to that off day on Thursday, so I can relate! I usually run 5 miles on Monday and Wednesday and then 6-7 on Tuesday, including speed work. You’re going to be so ready for this marathon!!! Way to stick with the plan! Thanks so much for linking up with the blog today; hope your week is off to a great start. Oh! Thanks for the recipe, too!
Tara @ Running ‘N’ Reading recently posted…Weekend Update
The theatre was packed! I think they show other major games during the year as well, but this is the first time I’ve gone there for a game. And supposedly, lighter colored, less heavy beers are summer beers, but give me dark and sweet any time of year.
I’m so very impressed with your cross training! I hope you have a wonderful week and look forward to following you Hanson training. PS. I love your mellow cat.
HoHo Runs recently posted…Scenes From A Holiday Weekend
It always makes me laugh when she sits like that. And that’s my first cross training this season, so don’t be too impressed.
Sounds like a wonderful weekend! The pasta salad looks really good 🙂
Akaleistar recently posted…Dream of the 90’s
It turned out really tasty. (I admit, I added the pepperoni before we headed to the get together.)