Virginia is a Southern state. We don't get a huge amount of snow each year, but most years we get *some* snow. (Some years we get walloped, but that's a topic for another post...) I have an older pair of Yaktrax Run that I think was sent to me to review. Maybe. Probably. Who knows... Anyways, I've had them for a couple of years and every time I need them, I'm so happy to have them. 'Cause, even with a treadmill in the basement, sometimes I just need to run outside. (Yes, I realize it wasn't that long ago when I stated I wasn't bada$$ enough to run outside in the cold weather. Sometimes you just have to.) According to the company: The Yaktrax Run is an ice traction device anatomically designed for use with running shoes. … [Read more...]
13 random things Thursday
My life seems to be going in 1000 directions at once and 13 is my favorite number, so... 1. Yesterday I spent my entire day in snow pants. I put them on early in the day to shovel snow and just never took them off. Why? Because my drafty old house does not do well with wind chills below zero. 2. It appears that I got the job I interviewed for last week. At least HR thinks so. I have an appointment next week to fill out paper work, but I haven't been contacted by the department I'll work for, so I'm not exactly sure what I've been hired for LOL. 3. I bought a new torture device at the running store last week - the Foot Log. I've had issues with my forefoot for quite some time now + plus my feet are getting kind of tired of all … [Read more...]
WIAW + slow cooker recipe
Every year, I suffer through Virginia's summers. 90+ degrees with matching humidity = pretty much all of July and August + some of June and September. In exchange, Virginia usually delivers me a reasonably cold winter with not a lot of snow. Sometimes Virginia does not live up to her end of the bargain. Sometimes we get FEET of snow. Sometimes we have wicked cold weather. While we haven't had feet of snow this year, we've had a fair amount and we've had crazy cold weather. This week (after a Monday where the highs nearly hit 60!), we have both. Bring on the treadmill and the comfort food! I did 4.7 miles on the 'mill yesterday and will do around 6 today. Who knows when I'll feel safe running outside again. (Snow removal … [Read more...]
I’m a leader!
At least for the day... Have you been by Run Like a Mother this morning? You might recognize the chick in the Vibrams. (Go ahead - check it out, I'll still be here...) I'm the "Follow this Mother" recipient today! When they contacted me last week, I was over the moon. I gushed all over Beer Geek and showed him the book. I was so.excited. Beer Geek got that "deer in the headlights look" and was like "Congrats, I guess." Men! They are just so clueless sometimes. Today is a snow day here and I stayed up way too late last night worrying about the power going out (some people have phobias about bugs, mine's about power outages in the winter...), so I need to get some coffee and then get the boys out in the snow. I have 8 … [Read more...]
Just call me MacGyver
It's cold and windy here this week, but today it finally warmed up to the high 20s, so I decided it was time to get back outside. I still haven't gotten around to purchasing a warmer pair of running tights, so I've been wearing a pair of compression shorts under my old ones along with a heavy pair of Thorlo socks that come up to midcalf. This works reasonably well for keeping my legs warm, but today I needed to wear a pair of shoes that only fit thinner socks than the Thorlos. I was afraid that if I just wore my really thin, ankle high socks that I'd end up with really cold legs. I hate being cold. While digging around in my sock drawer, I found an old pair of knee highs. Aha! I cut off a few inches at the toes and pulled them up as high … [Read more...]
I am SO hardcore
I went running today in the snow. OK, so it was just flurries and well, there was no snow actually on the ground. And really, it was 36 degrees out, but still, I'm hardcore, right? (I can hear you northern girls snickering from here.) After two days of 33 degree rain, it was dry and sunny today AND a friend took Shoo for a couple of hours. I was planning a 4 mile tempo run, but I've been having some stomach issues and I had a raging headache, so I decided to just do an easy 3 miler. I felt better as I ran and did manage to do 4.5 miles at about a 9:30 pace, but it was definitely not a great run. I also tried to use my heart monitor and I couldn't get the band to "talk" to the forerunner. Not sure what the problem is. Even if I can get … [Read more...]
