Announcement: Philadelphia Marathon Weekend Ambassadorship

Hi Everyone! Happy Monday!

I am honored and excited to be a part of Philadelphia Marathon Weekend as an ambassador!

I'm a huge fan of all things Philadelphia. Sports teams, city history, landmarks, skyline, food, and in general. The Philadelphia Marathon was my first marathon and will always be near and dear to me. It’s very well organized, an awesome tour of the city, and excellent fan support, especially when I begin to hit that wall, the roar of the crowd in Manayunk picks you up to send you on your way to the finish line.

The Philadelphia Marathon Weekend has 8k (presented by Rothman Orthopedics), Half Marathon (presented by Dietz and Watson, and Marathon (presented by AACR) options, as well as children’s activities and run (presented by Dunkin’)

I look forward to sharing Philadelphia Marathon Weekend news updates with you, as well as my journey.

Hope to see you out there! If you haven’t signed up yet, please do! I will also be receiving a discount code to share with you upon request. ;)

If you have any questions, please let me know! 

Have a great day everyone!

Weekly Running Report: June 13, 2021

Hi Everyone!

Hope you are all doing well! 

How's training going? Any races (IRL or virtual)?  

How's the weather been treating you? In South East Pa, we had some hot days, humid days, and a couple tolerable days. How about you?

I have some exciting news, you may have already seen it, but I'm holding my post until tomorrow.  Hmm... Wonder what it could be?

Reminder, if you're just skimming my blog, lol..  reminder that I also have gear and race discount tabs/pages on my blog site to check out as well. :) 

My Week in Training:

Monday: 6 miles. Sun, hydrated somewhat, but a long day in the heat at a baseball gm (probably outside from 11 am to 5pm), probably could of hydrated a little better. Failed to foam roll/stretch. And I didn't want to go to bed on time. Still hyped up from the gm. Up before my alarm, but not quality rest. Coffee, 40 min workout, hydrate, and out the door by 6. Felt fine to start, but also seemed like slow motion. Heat, hills, humidity, a bit of through the motions today. There's a heat advisory for later, 100+ index! Yikes! 

Tuesday: 7 miles. Mon, hydrated very well (tons right after my run and plenty throughout the day), foam rolled/stretched, and an excellent night's rest! Was a little groggy to start, but once I got going, felt great! Coffee, 35 min workout (chest, core), hydrate, and out the door by 6. Was pretty optimistic about today's run.. until I went out side. lol... Decent start, but the triple H, heat, hills, humidity, got me! TMI, sat on my stoop after my run, rung out so much water from my clothes before heading in. So gross! Still glad I got my run done. They say it takes three weeks to become acclimated to the heat. We shall see about that! lol... 

Wednesday: 7 miles. Supposed to be 1-3 day? dunno.. anyway, I did 7.

Tue, hydrated well, foam roll/stretch, in bed on time, and a decent night's rest. Coffee.. walking by the window full of condensation (window is fine, this is not normal), guess it may be a bit humid out there. Checked before stepping out, yeah, 98%... But I digress.. coffee, 35 min workout (arms/shoulders/core), hydrate, and out the door by 6. Trying not to think about the temp/humid. It is what it is. Got into a comfortable pace. Drenched early again..of course. Not saying I've adjusted yet, but felt a little better than Mon/Tues. Until midway hills and the last 1.5 or so. Happier with today's run. 

Thursday: 7 miles. Actually sched as 7 today. lol

Wed, hydrated very well, foam roll/stretch, decent night's rest, but up early. Up for a few minutes, tossed/turned. gave up. Time for a decent workout. Coffee, 45 min strength training. (chest/core). Out the door a few min early. (TMI, even when I have time to leave early, tummy sched gets me nervous, lol). Guess what, it's a little humid out. Only 96%, not bad, Ha! Whatever. Again, just going to go with the flow. Push if I can, but understand if variables get me. Felt a lot better today. Comfortable low 8's for a bit. Drenched early, of course, but moving along. Fading slightly along the inclines and could tell I will lose it in the hills. 8:12 ish as the hills pick up. A couple areas to settle in again, tried to pull back on purpose up a hill and regroup. Crazy how in the last hill can feel there's no way I can go on, but feel fine a few min after it levels. lol.. Early on wanted 8:15, but will definitely settle for 8:20 for how this week has felt.  Today felt decent till the last couple hills. I'll take it! After work, I did 1.5 hours of yard work, blah! I usually try to sched that when I have a short run day or rest day the following day, but we have had afternoon thunderstorms most of the week. 

Side notes:

1. about a mi in to my run today, probably 6:05 am, saw someone leaving for work, already smoking a stoagie! I admit, I do enjoy the smell. Haven't had one in many years. But just a little early for that...

2. Saw a cyclist, but I guess they were riding for transportation purposes. They were smoking as well..

Friday: 5 miles. Although I probably should of done four? lol thinking about doing 18 tomorrow. My training plan lists 30 min runs the day before 18-20. but I digress..

Thu, very well hydrated, stretched/foam roll, and a decent night's rest. Up a few min before my alarm. Think that's all week. I like it! Getting enough quality rest! Coffee, 40 min workout (arms/shoulders/core), and out the door by 6. Feeling decent, and temps a little nicer today, goin gto try to push it! The heat has kept me down and going to try to enjoy the brief nice temp! Had my nice speed shoes on, opens door, it's raining! grr.. Have retired speed shoes, will give them a whirl.. The rain was light and enjoyable. No glasses tho. Off to an excellent start. A short steep hill, few flattish streets and then inclines. My quads felt the extra push and inclines, second half was rough, but fun. 300 ft elevation gain, I do admit, I avoided two hills to work on speed tho. lol.. Was fun to get a break from the heat and have fun pushing it. 

Saturday: 18 miles. Trying to rotate 14-18 mi runs for a few months until it's time to follow a plan. Did 16 last week, guess I gotta do 18 this week? lol.. I have time today, just a few light chores, and minimal social plans. No excuse not to today. Just a little anxiety I guess. 

Fri, hydrated very well, carb loaded, foam rolled/stretched, and a decent night's rest. Up before my alarm. Coffee, short core workout, "routine", and over to my trail by 6:30. My trail . Park in the middle, Welsh and Terwood Rd. Doing the slight gradual incline/more open side to Rockledge first. I like to do the more open side in case the Sun/heat is more rough later on. Pace settled in early. Temps not bad, but humidity still a thing. Sweat going down my glasses early. lol.. Today, will do a few miles around Rockledge instead of Pennypack Park due to a race going on over there. (probably should of participated, but it sold out early). Left the trail at Rockledge. Did my Strava legend hill and small loop around Rockledge twice. Back on the trail returning. Bumped into my speedy friend (I'm 7+ mi in), turned around for a min. Should not have (on long run day), but picked it up and ran a mi with him. Quads felt it. Turned back (again). On the way back, did the side trail from Lorimer to Pennypack Park. Turned around before the park. Back to the main trail. Lorimer to the parking lot. My goal was to get 11 mi in before the parking lot. Had 11.8 ish. The main section I just did is 5.75 ish (2.8x2), the Rockledge loop, the extra w/ my friend, and the side trail all helped. At my car, hydrated, for sure! Off to the more wooded side to County Line Rd and back. Before hydrating, had some doubts, but got a second wind for a bit. Feeling it by 14 mi. Turned around shy of the end (the goal of 11 at the parking lot and was over, I didn't have to go to the end to hit 18), once I got about 2.8 left. Countdown on for the return, for sure! Last couple were rough, but done! 

Side notes:

1. I forgot my primary headphones, and they were right by my car keys, 'doh! Thankfully I have a cheap pair in my bad for rainy days. What's the worse thing yo uhave forgotten to pack for a run?

2. Speaking of headphones.. I feel like I say this every week lately.. We dont want to hear your music or phone calls! Stop using speakers! 

3. another repeat complaint.. leash your dogs people! I'm sure your dog is calm and friendly if you say so. but we don't know them! 

Full trail pics on Facebook

Sunday: 10 miles, but this is usually rest/short run day? Well.. yesterday while thinking about my upcoming week, I have a few days I may not be getting as many miles due to personal plans. Figured if I feel ok today, after yesterday's 18 miles, I may try to get a few more today. Had some doubts on that, but was feeling ok when talking to myself. lol.. Although, I may have had a few drinks in me. lol..  Sat, did an ice bath, hydrated very well, foam rolled/stretched. Did offset hydration a little. Didn't stay up that late for a Saturday, but more out of boredom. lol.. Decent rest. "Slept in" till 6. lol.. Coffee and taking my time. Foam rolled my back and loosened up a bit. Felt alright about my decision, so far. Over to my trail by 7:30. Which is kind of late, midway parking lot is usually full by 8. Did the more wooded side to County Line Rd first. A little slow to start, wasn't too concerned yet, figured worst case, it may be a slow/comfy pace day. Quads did feel it a little at first, but not bad. Even picked up the pace. Eventually pacing 8:02 ish. Did not expect that, but rolled with it! Focusing on breathing, etc. Countdowns were on for sure, but not bad. Return from County Line Rd, hydrated as I passed my car at 7 mi. When I first started, figured I could always bail by 7, but no intentions of bailing now. On I go. More open side to Rockledge, but turning around about 1.3 to go. Bumped into my speedy friend, oh he's only dong 14 mi at 7:15 pace. Talked for a couple, but no, not trying that. lol.. Faded slightly before I finished. but under 8:15 when I figured to be 8:30-45 kind of day, I'll take it! We'll see if I have any regrets tomorrow! lol...  Bumped into another friend post run, great catching up with them! 

Full pics on Facebook

What did I do besides run, workout, work, and chores this week? Watched HLN's Very Scary People (murder docu series), Loki! Have been looking fwd to Loki, was entertaining, can't wait to see where this leads! baseball, basketball.. Not much else.

Q: How about you? Anything exciting outside of running? Any adventures? Binge watching anything?

Weekly Summary:

Miles: 60 weekly miles running 

Year to Date: 1109 miles running 

Hill Goal (for the yr):   63605/100k elevation gain. Initial goal 100k to beat last yr's 98k. 

Strength Training: Goal 180 minutes, 261 minutes completed. What type of strength training do I do? Core: crunches, planks, leg raises. Weights: biceps, triceps, shoulders, chest. 

Hydration Goal:  7 days 

Foam Roll: 5 days 

Training Plan:  Loosely following the below plan structure until it's time to follow for a race. 

Image from Coach Jenny Hadfield

Race Schedule: 

10.17.2021 - NJ Marathon - deferral from spring 2020. 

11.21.2021 - Philadelphia Marathon - deferral from 2020 (registered the day after 2019's race!). Definitely a fav! If you haven't registered yet, I may know someone getting a discount code soon. Hit me up! 

Be sure to check out my Race and Gear discount pages from my blog site. #BibRavePro ;)

Good luck to everyone with training! Kick some butt! If you do any races(virtual or IRL), please remember to review them on BibRave.com! 

Weekly Running Report: June 6, 2021

 Hi Everyone!

Hope you are all doing well! 

How's training going? Any races (IRL or virtual)?  

How's the weather where you are? We have a few days in the 90's, be sure to hydrate! 

Reminder, if you're just skimming my blog, lol..  reminder that I also have gear and race discount tabs/pages on my blog site to check out as well. :) #BibRavePro

My Week in Training:

Monday: Memorial day. Hope my U.S. followers took a moment to reflect as to why we have off work today.

Monday.. 11 miles. usually 6-7 mi day, but with the day off work and chasing numbers (for me), going for 11 today. 11 miles would put me at 1000 mi for the year. My earliest to hit this mark. Jan-March, my avg was 200 mi a month, but my avg dipped during my taper in April. Ending May with 226 mi and right back on track. In May, saw that I was having above avg (for me) for a bit, but didn't think I would catch up this soon. With a four day weekend, goal was to try to do four 10+ days. Sat/Sun (previous week report) were a success and here we are. Sunday, did hydrate and an Epsom bath. Failed to stretch/foam roll. Also partook in beverages. Decent night's rest. Had my alarm set. Not sure why, just like beating the crowd. Coffee, and over to my trail by 7:30. My trail Pennypack Creek. Mixing up my route today just to have some variety since I will be here 4 days straight. Midway parking lot. Welsh and Terwood Rd. Doing the slightly more open, gradual incline side to Rockledge Park. Temps were nice and cool. Have another day or two 'till summer returns. Pacing and run felt great today. At Rockledge Park, left the trail just for a bit. Crushing my strava legend hill. Tough and did slow me down a notch. Turned around to head back. (occasionally do a loop around this 'hood). On the way back, did a side trail from Lorimer Park to Pennypack Park. (initial route would be approx 6(3x2), doing about 2.5x2 out and back on this side trail). Initial side trail has plenty of slick mud from all the rain this weekend. Came close to wiping out a couple times. Once at Pennypack Park, paved trail. A few rolling hills. Wet pollen was slick here. Couple down slopes had to  be cautious of slipping on the pollen. Turned around at about 2.5, back to the main trail, with about 1.5 to go from Lorimer to the parking lot. Pace was 8:15 for a while, but the tough hill and later rolling ones got me a bit. Tried splitting on the way back from Lorimer (flattish and smooth), but not much doing. But still felt great much of the way today. Pretty happy. Especially since this was the 3rd 10+ day in a row.

Side notes: 

1. Leash your dogs people. Wish I didn't have to keep saying this. lol.. Passed someone with two unleashed dogs. Running around with energy. No issues, but we don't know your dogs and how they will react. Not cool. Saw some again later off into the distance, may have been the same person.

2. People, we don't want to hear your music or phone calls. Use headphones, such as Aftershokz.  

Full trail pic on Facebook

May and YTD summary (as of 5/31):

Tuesday: 10 miles. Usually 6-7 mi.. but again, day off and having fun doing "extra". lol.. Mon, hydrated well, Epsom bath, and failed yet again to foam roll/stretch. Shame on me..  Partook in beverages (again, it's a holiday weekend.) Stayed up slightly past my bed time. Had my alarm set and disabled it. Didn't really sleep in tho. Coffee and eventually over to my trail. Temps going up, but still nice to start. (could feel the sun and difference in temp later on). Starting off in the opposite direction today. More wooded section to County Line Rd. (no longer saying ByBerry?) There is a new small extension past Byberry to County Line now. Pace felt like slow motion from the start. Past three days felt great, not so much today. Pacing 8:20's to start and definitely took effort to maintain to 8:30. Turnaround at County Line and return. Passing by the parking lot at 7 mi. Skipped hydration and kept on for bout 15 min and back. Tired today, but still glad I did it. No regrets doing four 10+ days in a row. We'll see if I'm saying that when I return to my neighborhood hills this week. lol... 

Side notes:

1. bumped into my buddy for a few minutes. They're starting training for Boston. Only hung with them a few minutes. They were doing speed work. You know, the kind that gets you into Boston. lol

2. Again, we don't want to hear your music/phone calls. More people using their phone speakers.

Wednesday: 7 miles. Totally planned on a rest day today.. lol.. 

Tue, hydrated well, ice bath, and failed to stretch/foam roll yet again. In bed at a decent time, but not a good night's rest. Up around 2-3, like wide awake! (back to work anxiety?) Tossed/turned. Not sure if I got any more rest. My watch says I did, but I don't believe it. Up before my alarm and somewhat ready to take on the day. Plenty of time to get a 45 min workout in and a decent run. Arms/shoulders, chest, and core. Done and out the door by 6. temps going slightly up, and humid. Not horrible, but there's a difference. Pace better than expected for a while. Inclines and then hills, fading slightly. Was a fight to maintain 8:15, but still fun. Was nice to get a break from the hills the past four days, but hey, hills are good for you. Good to get some in! 

Thursday: 7 miles. Did think about cutting back a mile since I did extra throughout the week, but still did 7. Maybe I will rest on Sunday. lol.. Wed, hydrated well, foam rolled and stretched (finally!), and got a good night's rest. Was just the right amount, almost completely consistent night. Up just before my alarm. Coffee, workout (35 min now, 10 more later, chest/core), out the door by 6. Temps/humidity going up each day. Off I go. Got into a "comfy" pace for a bit. Felt the inclines before the hills, (most of the hills start at 3) questioned if I really wanted to do them or just weave my way back. Continued on. Sweating and drenched early and throughout. Pacing 8:10 before the hills, surprised I didn't fade more through them. Tried to maintain 8:15, but slipped in the last incline. Rough, but better overall than expected. And summer temps on their way! 

Friday: 5 miles. Thu, hydrated well, foam roll/stretch, and a decent night's rest. Up a few minutes early. Ready to go. Coffee, 40 min strength training (chest/core), ended up doing a little more later in the day. And out the door by 6. Plan was to take it easy today. Well... Just heading out the door was gross! Humid to say the least (96% humidity, high dew point as well), like a swamp out there. Taking it easy from the start. First two alerts were slightly slower than expected. May have picked it up just a notch. Drenched early. Moving along. As I approached the hills, really did think about skipping them to go even easier, but did some of them. Only skipped the ones that would have taken me to 6-7 mi routes. Slowed down 3.5-5mi and wasn't too concerned. Just glad to be done. 

Saturday: 16 miles. Fri, hydrated well, carb load, relax, foam roll/stretch, and in bed on time. Decent night's rest, and up just before my alarm. Coffee, short core workout. Don't always do these on long run days, but chasing numbers again. Goal to do 3 hours a week strength training, minimum. Slacked Mon/Tues with the days off work. Hit my weekly goal. "Routine", and over to my trail before 6:30. I've been talking about the temps eventually going up, well, it's here. A few days straight of 90's. Near 70 to start and going up. My trail . Park at Welsh and Terwood Rd. Starting out towards the more open side to Rockledge Park (get the open side done before the heat really sets in). Pace settled in early around 8:30, but gradually pulling back. Would not force that pace for me in this heat. Drenched early, whatever, knew that was going to happen. At Rockledge, left the trail to do a few blocks of my strava legend hill. Pace faded slightly as expected. Turned around at the intersection just ahead. About 3.2 in. Back on the trail heading back. Since the opposite trail is 7 mi, looking to do 9 here. Would be about 6.4. So at Lorimer, taking the side trail to PennyPack Park for a bit. Nasty rain yesterday afternoon. Slippery mud again, and then on the paved trail, slippery pollen again. (similar to Monday). After about 14 minutes, turned back to Lorimer. Pacing 8:40's. Strava hill and a couple rolling hills in PennyPack Park. Not concerned about pace. yet. lol.. Lorimer to the parking lot. Hit 9 miles just before the lot. Math on point. (math can be hard while on the run sometimes, lol) Was sure to hydrate at my car! Needed it, fo sho! Off to the more wooded section to County Line Rd. (decent amount of shade for the last 7!) Pace still 8:40's. Figured I would have faded a little more by now, but rolling along. Byberry Rd to County Line, more wide open to the sun, but a short path. (.8 ish) Doing the math, hit 3.5 to go before I got to the end and turned around a little shy. Shortly after turning around bumped into a couple friends I've never run with! Michelle, who I know from a friend and IG, and that friend and fellow #BibRavePro Lisa! They saw me and chased me down (unknowingly to me) for about a mi! Great to finally see them here! Our schedules are usually just slightly off. 3.5 mi to go. Chatting with them on the way back, it was great catching up with them, and picking their brains a bit. (more experienced endurance athletes). Didn't think about the heat (or any other suffering) to end. Was great to run with them for a bit. They went on their way to do their 18 and 20 milers. The run itself was manageable. (not great/not horrible), and pace on point/slightly better than expected for the weather. Am tryint to mentally prepare for the heat slowdown that is inevitable. lol 

Full pics on Facebook, although I meant to grab another trail pic, but was too busy chatting it up. ;)

Full pics on Facebook

Go Pro pics courtesy of Philly.Runner226, check out her IG, here! 

Sunday: 

Sat recovery, ice bath, needed that! hydrated very well, TMI - 6 waters before I even had to use the rest room. Foam roll/stretch..Did offset hydration a little with beverages, but did hydrate along. 

Supposed to be rest day, and haven't had a 1-3 mi day in a bit. If I do 4, I'll  have a 60 mi week, first of the year. Hmm.. I do need that rest day.. We'll see. Decent night's rest. Coffee and slowly getting going. Have a long day ahead, think I will stick to 3.11 mi. Actually stopped chasing numbers? lol.. Foam roll my back out. Out the door around 7. Going to be another hot day. Going to try to push it, but have low expectations. Slight incline to start, somewhat flat for a bit. Pace alerts better than expected. Had a few that start with a 6! Definitely started to feel heavy legs from yesterday's long run and extra miles in general. Hills starting around 1.2 mi. Fading and a bit of a struggle to maintain remainder of the way. A couple declines to regroup, but another later set of hills got me. Rough, but still better than expected.  Going to be along day in the heat (going to a baseball game) Will be sure to hydrate! 

What did I do besides run, workout, work, and chores this week? A couple outings. Watched HLN's Very Scary People (murder docu series), baseball, basketball.. Not much else.

Q: How about you? Anything exciting outside of running? Any adventures? binge watching anything?

Weekly Summary:

Miles: 59 weekly miles running 

Year to Date: 1048.9 miles running 

Hill Goal (for the yr):   60515/100k elevation gain. Initial goal 100k to beat last yr's 98k. 

Strength Training: Goal 180 minutes, 182 minutes completed. What type of strength training do I do? Core: crunches, planks, leg raises. Weights: biceps, triceps, shoulders, chest. 

Hydration Goal:  7 days 

Foam Roll: 4 days 

Training Plan:  Loosely following the below plan structure until it's time to follow for a race. 

Image from Coach Jenny Hadfield

Race Schedule: 

10.17.2021 - NJ Marathon - deferral from spring 2020. 

11.21.2021 - Philadelphia Marathon - deferral from 2020 (registered the day after 2019's race!). Definitely a fav! If you haven't registered yet, I may know someone getting a discount code soon. Hit me up! 

Be sure to check out my Race and Gear discount pages from my blog site. #BibRavePro ;)

Good luck to everyone with training! Kick some butt! If you do any races(virtual or IRL), please remember to review them on BibRave.com! 

Weekly Running Report: May 30, 2021

 Hi Everyone!

Hope you are all doing well! 

How's training going? Any races (IRL or virtual)?  How's the weather in your area? We've had a few hot/humid ones, with cold and rain to end the week. Rough to start, fun to end!

Reminder, if you're just skimming my blog, lol..  reminder that I also have gear and race discount tabs/pages on my blog site to check out as well. :) #BibRavePro

My Week in Training:

Monday 6 miles. Oh Monday, we meet again. Sunday, hydrated well, foam roll/stretched, focused on rest/recovery. Did have a few SundayFunday beverages, but behaved and hydrated. Decent night's rest, but a little tired to start. Coffee, 30 min workout (arms/shoulders/core), and out the door by 6. Still feeling Saturday's 18 miler, plan on taking a comfy pace. Push if avail, but no pressure. Felt better than expected, but not completely fresh. Off to a decent start. Felt the inclines to the hills and faded a bit. Tried to maintain to 8:15 since I had a decent start of low 8's. Rough towards the finish, but done and better than expected. 

Tuesday 7 miles. Monday, hydrated well, foam rolled, stretched, and an excellent night's rest. Groggy to start, but a consistent night of rest. Coffee, 30 minute workout (chest/core), and out the door by 6. Supposed to be speed day, not sure about that, but will push it a bit. Off to a decent start and moving along. high 7:40's for a while. Rough to push it, but fun. Faded along the inclines, fought to maintain to 8, lost it in the last mi. Missed it, and was rough, but still happy with it overall. 

side note: saw a new walker out during my run. Was thinking good for them! Unfortunately, they were smoking along their walk. 'doh!

Wednesday 7 miles. Tues, hydrated very well, iced my shin, failed to foam roll/stretch. Decent night's rest. Up before my alarm, waited a few min and still up early. Coffee, 40 min workout (amrs/shoulders, chest, core) and out the door by 6. Wed is usually 1-3 mi day. Was already thinking about doing extra today, waking up early kinda help steer me to it as well. Plan was to take it easy today. Do a "comfy" pace. Settled in early. But heavy legs and humidity, it was a rough one. Drenched by mi 2. Rethought my plans to do extra, even thought about cutting back distance, since any of it would be "extra". Breathing/ minute countdowns on most of the second half. Hung in there to finish out. 

Side notes: had two compliments today. Not why we do this, but always nice to hear. Especially on a rough day.

1. Someone that lives at the top of one of my hills, mentioned once they see me go by, they know it's going to be a good day. 

2. Township trash pickup, was sitting on my stoop for a few minutes after and they went by. Mentioned that they swear they see me everyday. The one admitted to being a car that beeps at my daily to cheer me on!  Always a good lift in spirit.

Thursday: 6 miles. Wed, hydrated well, failed to foam roll/stretch, but got a decent night's rest. Tired when that alarm went off and for some reason wasn't in the mood to get going. Started the day in a "blah" mood. Went through the motions though and got it done. 30 min workout (chest/core, got more done later) and out the door by 6. Warm temps with high humidity, going to be a fun one. Wasn't setting out to set records today and didn't. Comfy pace. Hung in there for a bit, but hills and humidity got me towards the end. Was glad when this was done. Wasn't in the mood, but happy I got through it. Started work in a blah mood, but ended up being a fine day. Mood eventually lightened up. Felt more like a Monday, but as the day went on, starting to look fwd to Friday! 

Friday: 5 miles. Thu, hydrated very well. foam rolled/stretched. Intentions of a good night's rest and in bed on time.. Well, it's my on-call week for work. Rarely many issues, and usually brief when there are. Well, not today. Called at 11pm, worked until 12:35 am. Went back to bed, but mind on work, tossed/turned. Eventually back to sleep, up again at 3:35. Worked for an hr, and done just when my alarm is abut to go off. No more sleep. :(  Coffee, and I'm sure there will be plenty today. 30 min workout (arms/shoulders/core), and out the door by 6. Planned on taking it easy. Temps were nice. Off to a comfy start, but picked up steam. Rolled along and then pushed it to maintain. Knew the last set of hills may slow me down, thought about skipping, but did them anyway. Tough to maintain at the end, but done! maintained to just below 8. Did not expect that today. Was a little light headed/zombie ish at work, but fine for my run. I'm sure it will be a long day, will be sure to get to bed early! 

Saturday: 14 miles. Friday, hydrated well, foam rolled/stretched, carb loaded, relaxed and in bed on time. Decent night's rest. Up just before my alarm. Tired, probably could of slept another hour, but up. Coffee, a few min of core workout. Eventually out the door. Cooler out and rain all weekend. Consistent rain through this morning. looking fwd to the temps. The rain, it is what it is. Going to get a little wet anyway, might as well go all out. lol.. Getting started is the hardest part. Once you acknowledge the fact you will be wet, you are good to go.. Eventually at my trail slightly after 6:30. My trail Pennypack Creek. Doing the more wooded section to ByBerry Rd first. Cool and wet to start. Temp adjust. Was concerned about over dressing. Was ok to start. Settle in. Moving slightly ahead of pace, pull back and then try to maintain. Hung in there for a bit. Splishing and splashing along. Fading up the slight incline and then maintaining. Pass my car at 7 mi, skipping hydration. Off to the more gradual incline side to Rockledge Park. Slight fade and then.. My short steep hill in Rockledge. Strava legend. Tough one today. A bit light headed at first, but regrouped. a few min past the hill to hit 10.6 before turning around for the trail, return and back. Happy for the slight decline, flat return, tried to picked it up, but pretty much just maintained.  

Not following a plan per se, but rotating 14-18 mi long run days until it's time, and chasing things..200 a month, past that today. 50 a week when possible. 45 as of today. And trying to catch up to 200 avg month since dropping during my taper in April. . 

Full pics on Facebook

Sunday: 10 miles. Usually 1-3 "rest/cutback day" for the streak. Well, this week, and end of month, chasing a few things. We shall see. Saturday, hydrated somewhat, epsom bath, and, relaxed. Offset hydration, but not too crazy. In bed early and a decent night's rest. Did wake up early and thought about changing my alarm. Waited it out and up. Coffee, short core workout, taking my time and eventually over to my trail by 7. Another rainy day. Is what it is. Enjoy the temps and just acknowledge you may get wet. My trail. Basically doing the same path to start as yesterday. Day 2 of 4 of trying to do 4 10+ days. We shall see. Plan to keep it sub 8:30. Off to a good start. Gradually fading up the inclines and trying to recoup on the decline. Better than expected for the most part. Last 3 miles was a challenge to maintain 8:15 overall, but done.  

Full pics on Facebook

Outside of Running: 

What did I do besides run, workout, work, and chores this week? Two outings. Watched HLN's Very Scary People (murder docu series), re-watching Schitt's Creek (wife hasn't seen it yet, almost done watching a 2nd time!),  Cruella, baseball, basketball..

Q: How about you? Anything exciting outside of running? Any adventures? binge watching anything?

Weekly Summary:

Miles: weekly 55 miles running 

Year to Date: 989.7 miles running (maybe trying to hit 1k by tomorrow? hmm)

Hill Goal (for the yr):   57896/100k elevation gain. Initial goal 100k to beat last yr's 98k. 

Strength Training: Goal 180 minutes, 219 minutes completed. What type of strength training do I do? Core: crunches, planks, leg raises. Weights: biceps, triceps, shoulders, chest. 

Hydration Goal:  7 days 

Foam Roll: 4 days 

Training Plan:  Loosely following the below plan structure until it's time to follow for a race. 

Image from Coach Jenny Hadfield

Race Schedule: 

10.17.2021 - NJ Marathon - deferral from spring 2020. 

11.21.2021 - Philadelphia Marathon - deferral from 2020 (registered the day after 2019's race!). 

Be sure to check out my Race and Gear discount pages from my blog site. #BibRavePro ;)

Good luck to everyone with training! Kick some butt! 

If you do any races(virtual or IRL), please remember to review them on BibRave.com! 

Weekly Running Report: May 23, 2021

Hi Everyone!

Hope you are all doing well! 

How's training going? Any races (IRL or virtual)?  

Reminder, if you're just skimming my blog, lol..  reminder that I also have gear and race discount tabs/pages on my blog site to check out as well. :) #BibRavePro

My Week in Training:

Monday: 7 miles. Sunday Funday, hydrated well, but slacked on foam roll/stretching, and had a few beverages. In bed on time.. but.. Up in the middle of the night and wide awake! Didn't think I would get anymore sleep, not sure if I did. Yesterday I was so tired midday, I had a 5 hr energy, wondering if that wired me too much... Not sure. Up a few min before my alarm. 30 min workout (arms, shoulders, core). Shoulder almost back to "normal" after pulling it last week. Foam roll my back, light stretch, and out the door by 6. Temps feeling nice again! Trying to enjoy it while I can. Off to a decent start, comfortable and a little faster than expected for a Monday. Monday is usually more toughest day, but feeling good. Scheduled for 6 mi, but changed my mind to 7. Felt the later inclines and hills, but legs weren't too too heavy. Happy overall, especially for a Monday with sleep and allergy issues. TMI time: allergies were a bit gross today. Constant drip/blowing my nose during my workout, took allergy pill, didn't help too much, and spit like my entire run. (somewhat normal, but even more often than normal).

Other side notes:

1. Saw a cat on a window sill, on the outside, think it wanted back in!

2. Running around a corner,  saw a fox after turning the corner, only 1 house away! It didn't stick around for pics. lol.. 

Tuesday: 7 miles. 

Remember how I said Monday is usually my toughest weekday. Well, that was today. lol.. Comfortable pace felt heavy and like I couldn't do much about it. Got better a few miles in, but then it's time to fight the inclines and hills. Hung in there for 8:30, but was a tough one. Wouldn't be hard on myself if it was a Monday, but since Monday went well, thought it might go a little better.

Wednesday: 3.11 miles. Tues, hydrated well, foam rolled/stretched (it's about time!), and a decent night's rest.. Speaking of rest.. had a crazy dream that my alarm was disabled, I slept in, missed my run and was late to work! Freaking ut about missing my run and when I'd get it in. Funny, wasn't too concerned about being late to work. Eventually woke up, looked at my alarm, laughed, and got a few more min rest..

Up at my alarm. Coffee, 45 min workout since I have a few extra minutes from a shorter run. (arms/shoulders/chest/ and core). Foam roll my back out and out the door by 6:15.  Will be trying to push it a bit, we'll see. Off to a decent start, but breathing was off, took a few min to adjust. Bringing pace down, had an alert that started with a 6!  But feeling it. Low 7's, but fading before the gradual hill at 1.2 mi. Fading up the hill, trying to regroup as it levels. Able to bring it down before the two smaller hills to end. Goal was 7:30, but faded closer to 7:40. Although there is a 5 second avg difference between my watch and phone today, rare that it is more than 2. Watch shows me cutting through a block and I had to go further than normal to end. Whatever...is what it is, till next time...  

Thursday 7 miles. Wed, hydrated well, foam rolled/stretched, and in bed on time.. Up just before my alarm. 30 min workout (arms/shoulders/core), and out the door by 6. Temps going up, was a hot afternoon yesterday, but ok this morning. Thursday is usually my best day, not this week... Who would of thought my best day would be Monday? lol.. First few min in and felt like slow motion. Comfortable pace, but legs feeling heavy when trying to pick it up. Still, try to keep in mind to ignore slow starts and keep at it. Eventually brought it down as I rolled along. 8:02 ish, but going back up as I approached the inclines before the hills. Hung in there for a bit before fading a bit more. Countdown going on the entire hour I was out there. lol.. Hung in there for 8:15, but wasn't pretty and could of easily been 8:30.

Friday: 5 miles. Thu, hydrated well, foam rolled/stretched. Did offset hydration by participating in ThirstyThursday, but behaved. In bed on time and got an excellent night's rest! Groggy when that alarm went off, but felt like the least interrupted sleep in a bit! Coffee, 30 min strength training (chest and core). (tmi time, barely got that 30 min in and almost late out the door, too many bathroom breaks). Foam roll my back, light stretch, and out the door by 6. Temps really going up, but not bad, yet. Legs were a little heavy yesterday, just hoping to be somewhat comfy today. Won't stress too much about pace, or so I tell myself. Off to an excellent start! Comfy and pace better than expected. Crazy how day to day can be so opposite. Pacing 7:40's and rolling right along. Focus on breathing, strike, etc. Fade slightly through inclines and hills. Countdown was on for the second half. Didn't expect to, but worked on it, maintain sub 8 overall. Tough last 10 minutes, but done! Felt pretty good overall. 

Saturday 18 miles.. Friday, hydrated well, foam rolled/stretched, and a decent night's rest.

Long run day, trail day, yay!18 miles? umm.. not so sure about this one. Last week, after doing 16, decided to sched 18 for this week. Last year between plans, rotated up to 16 till it was time to follow the plan. Thinking about doing up to 18 until it's time. Weather sure has changed in the past week, temps going up, for sure. Questioned it, but stuck to the plan.. At my trail by 6:15. Daylight is earlier, would love to start earlier, but my tummy just needs a little more time. My trail Pennypack Creek. Midway parking lot, Welsh and Terwood Rd. Starting towards the more wooded area to ByBerry Rd. Settled in around 8:30 early. Feeling the slightly warmer temps in the first couple miles. Going to be a fun one! Planned on taking pics before I got tired, but rolled along, no trail pics. New trail section past Byberry Rd to the end. Turn around and back to the midway parking lot. Made sure to hydrate as I passed my car at 7 mi. Off to the more gradual incline to Rockledge Park. Feeling it by mi 9. Questioned my decisions, but kept on going. From Rockledge, off the trail to my strava legend hill (stay away, it's mine!), around Rockledge for a couple. Back on the trail. On the way back, took a side trail from Lorimer Park to Pennypack Park for about 2.5 and back. Loving that I added a couple side options instead of doing the rail trail multiple times, but one thing I miss by doing that, less opportunities to pass my car for hydration. Around 15 mi, was looking for fountains at Pennypack Park and Lorimer. Jokingly thought of jumping in the creek to cool off. Back on the trail, got back into some kind of groove to finish out. Felt the sun, but knowing it was flat the last 1.5 helped ease my mind. Rough, but done. We shall see if I do another 18 before it's called for. lol.. 

Sunday: 3.11 miles. Saturday, hydrated very well, did an ice bath, failed to foam roll/stretch. Offset hydration a bit with beverages, but did hydrate along. Stayed up past my bed time. Planned to sleep in, but up at 6. Slow to get up, but coffee, and moving along. Eventually out the door around 8:30. So now that summer temps have arrived, that Sunday sleep in may not always be a good thing. A  bit warm. Feeling yesterday's "long" run, but going for 3 to end the week at 50 mi. Off to a better start than expected, but feeling it, not trying to over do it. Heat kicking in.. First mi faster than planned, but pulling back a bit. Hill starts around 1.2.  Gradual incline. This hill goes by at least 5 religious buildings, Churches, schools, convent, etc. I usually make an effort not to cuss as i go by. Not thinking about it, definitley cussing my way up the hill. Unfortunately there's a corner I couldn't see around. There was a small family in there Sunday best on their way to church as I cussed my way past. Apoligized profusely, felt bad. lol..  Tried to regroup as the hill leveled out, but two smaller hills in 2-3, through and done. 

Outside of Running: 

What did I do besides run, workout, work, and chores this week? Two outings s this week. One out to dinner, Mad Mex, my fav wings! And an outiing to Bishop Estate Winery to meet up with friends that we havent seen since pre-pandemic! Great to see them! Watched HLN's Very Scary People (murder docu series), re-watching Schitt's Creek (wife hasn't seen it yet),  baseball, basketball..

Q: How about you? Anything exciting outside of running? Any adventures? binge watching anything?

Weekly Summary:

Miles: weekly 50 miles running 

Year to Date: 934.6 miles running

Hill Goal (for the yr):   54944/100k elevation gain. Initial goal 100k to beat last yr's 98k. 

Strength Training: Goal 180 minutes, 181 minutes completed. What type of strength training do I do? Core: crunches, planks, leg raises. Weights: biceps, triceps, shoulders, chest. 

Hydration Goal:  7 days 

Foam Roll: 4 days 

Training Plan:  Loosely following the below plan structure until it's time to follow for a race. 

Image from Coach Jenny Hadfield

Race Schedule: 

Nothing in the immediate future, but I am toying with the idea of running the Delaware Running Festival marathon on June 13. Have enough time to recover, and get a few long runs in. It's a matter of making sure my personal plans are clear with this late of notice. And if I really want to run that far in June temps.

Further down the line:

10.17.2021 - NJ Marathon - deferral from spring 2020. 

11.21.2021 - Philadelphia Marathon - deferral from 2020 (registered the day after 2019's race!). 

Be sure to check out my Race and Gear discount pages from my blog site. #BibRavePro ;)

Good luck to everyone with training! Kick some butt! 

If you do any races(virtual or IRL), please remember to review them on BibRave.com! 

Weekly Running Report: May 16, 2021

Hi Everyone!

Hope you are all doing well! 

How's training going? Any races (IRL or virtual)?  

Haven't posted a blog in a bit. Slacking! Was taking some me time. Back now, trying to get back into the groove. 

Reminder, if you're just skimming my blog, lol..  reminder that I also have gear and race discount tabs/pages on my blog site to check out as well. :) #BibRavePro

My Week in Training:

Monday: 7 miles. Two plus weeks since my marathon, haven't done a 7 mi midweek run yet. Decided to start the week off with it. Wise? unsure. SundayFunday, did have a few beverages, but hydrated along the way. Trying to behave to start the week off right! Foam rolled/stretched, relaxed, but Monday is still usually the toughest day for me. Got a call overnight from work. Forgot I'm on -call (more sub consciously did) and tried to disable my alarm instead of answering my phone. Eventually took the call and up for a bit. Back to sleep I go. Rough getting up for a Monday, but not horrible. Coffee, 30 min workout. (arms/shoulders/core) and out the door by 6. ..Oops, forgot to come back for my recap after I started it. lol. 7 done, but wasn't horrible for a Monday.

Tuesday: 7 miles. Was planning on doing 6?  Monday, hydrated well, foam roll, stretch, and a decent night's rest. Up a few times and again before my alarm. Coffee, 35 min strength training (core and chest), and out the door by 6. Temps cooler for this time of yr and nice. Slightly slow start, but got into a groove after the first couple small hills and brought it down a notch. Rolling along, working on breathing/strike, etc. Did feel some slight soreness in left ankle and right shin, but non issue. Feeling a bit better than yesterday's run, around mi 4-5 decided to on 7 before turning back for 6. Knew it would involve extra hills and pace may suffer (and it did), but still felt good overall. Glad I went the extra mi.

Extra cardio: 1.5 hrs yard work after work.  

Wednesday: 3.11 miles. "short" run for the streak. Tues, hydrated well, failed to foam roll/stretch, I slacked there. But got a decent night's rest. Up before my alarm, and already have a few extra minutes due to the shorter run, got a 45 min workout in. (arms/chest/core). Foam roll my back and light stretch. Out the door by 6:15. Temps still nice. Focus on breathing/strike and off I go!  Trying to push it a bit. Got my pace down by the 2 min pace alert. Pacing 7: teens. But feeling it just before the gradual incline around mi 1.2. Faded to about 7:30. Regroup and decline before a couple smaller hills. Focus on count down and breathing up the hills. Maintained to just below 7:30, it was rough, but fun! 

Thursday: 7 miles. Again, was planning on 6.  But looking at my avg and wanting to get back to 200 months, decided if I'm doing ok midway that I'll keep going.  Wed, hydrated well, skipped foam roll/stretch again. TBH, slacking lately on it. Decent night's rest, bt some funky dreams! Woke up in the middle of the night with a sharp pain in my shoulder. Dont think it's related to weights, will discuss later. lol.. Up a few min early, coffee, core workout (no weights due to the shoulder, even planks was a stretch). Roll my back out, light stretch and out the door by 6. Temps still nice! trying to make a point to cherish them while they last! Summer will be here soon enough! Off I go. Felt good and first pace alert on point, second slowed down up a hill. I try not to judge them just yet since I have two small inclines to start, but I do. Eventually in rhythm. Feeling pretty decent. Again in mi 4-5, not turning back to end at 6. Stretching it out a bit on the opposite side of the 'hood. Inclines, hills, pace still ahead of expectation. Longer gradual incline, quads getting heavy, but hung in there to maintain just below 8. Didn't feel as great as Tues, but pace was better. Thu's seem to be my best midweek day pace wise. Glad I went the extra mi and felt decent after. 

So.. back to my shoulder hurting.. Shoulder was fine yesterday, what happened?  Totally forgot about this. Shortly before bed there was a fly in our house we want to get rid of before bed. Well, maybe jumping/swatting like a volleyball spike against a high wall didn't help? Not positive this is what did it, but strong possibility.. 

Friday: 5 miles to head into the weekend! Thu, hydrated well, offset by a couple drinks at dinner, but still hydrated along. Home before bed, but wasn't ready and stayed up till almost 10! So late! Decent rest. Failed to foam roll/stretch. Not a good week as far as that goes. Up just before my alarm. Coffee, workout. Shoulder a little better. Able to work arms. Usually do shoulders next, but lifting that weight up past should height hurt! Chest, and core done. Foam roll my back, light stretch, and out the door by 6. Off to a much better start than expected. 7:30's for a bit. Not reasonable for 5 with hills for me, but hung in there for a bit. Faded as the inclines added up towards the hills. Feeling it, could of easily let go of pace in the last mi, but hung in to maintain sub 8. Wasn't pretty, but still fun and done. 

Saturday: 16 miles. Long run day, trail day, yay! Fri, hydrated well, carb loaded, foam rolled, stretched (finally), and relaxed a bit. In bed at a decent time. Up a couple times, but ready to go. Coffee, short core workout, foam roll my back, light stretch, and over to my trail around 6:30.  Missed my trail last weekend due to car issues, happy to be back. Temps were nice to start, around 48, but will be going up. My trail Pennypack Creek. Park in the middle, Welsh and Terwood Rd. Starting out towards the more wooded section to ByBerry Rd. Started faster than planned, kept with it slightly longer than I should of but felt good, gradually pulling back. At ByBerry Rd end, it's no longer an end, there's a new section that's been under construction and has opened! Decided to keep going and check it out! Scenery wasn't much, going by a parking lot then forest, but was still nice. added about 1.5 (.8 x2). Turnaround. Hitting mi at diff points than expected. didn't realize that was 1.5 till I got back to the midway parking lot. Hit 7 mi. usually 5.5 ish. Hydrated at my car. Didn't feel the need, but thought it would be a good idea. off to the slightly gradual incline side to Rockledge. Fading slightly, but within goal. At Rockledge, left the trail for a bit. Needed to get mi hill (strava legend still even tho I've missed a couple weekends here). Around Rockledge for a bit and back to the trail. On the way back, knew I would still need a little more mi. At Lorimer Park, took the side trail to Pine Rd and back. Lorimer Park back to the midway parking lot, needed .3 more. Around the parking lot and back for a few min. lol.. Felt the last couple mi, but not bad. Along my run, bumped into three friends I haven't seen in a bit, didn't get a chance to catch up, but after my run bumped into a couple more and b.s. for almost an hour. First time catching up since befoer my race. Great to see them! And my one friend that BQ'd in Philly '19, his time was within standard to get into the condensed Boston Marathon field. So happy for him! 

Other side notes:

1. leash your dogs people! Saw one unleashed dog today. Calm black lab. Calm and no issues, but still, we don't know your dog and if that will be the case.

2. No one wants to hear your music! (feel like an old man yelling at kids. lol..) But seriously, if you want music, wear headphones, if you are concerned about hearing your surroundings, wear aftershokz! 

Full pics on Facebook

Sunday: 5 mi. Usually 1-3 for rest day streak day? Run Streak day 1940. Well, after yesterday's run, saw I was at 45 and it's been a few weeks since I've hit 50, so... lol.. 

Saturday, busy day after my run, few hours of outdoor chores, hydrated very well. Best hydration day in a bit. Did eventually offset some with a few beverages. lol.. Up slightly past my bed time, 11 pm! "Slept in" till about 7. Coffee, taking my time and eventually out the door. Comfortable to start, but legs got heavy through the early inclines. Questioned my choice, but kept going. Also thought about skipping a few hills, but got them done as well. Faded to about 8:15, but didnt really care about pace today. Will try to take it easy to be somewhat ready to take on the week. 

Outside of Running: 

What did I do besides run, workout, work, and chores this week? Two outings. One for a family bday dinner, the other to have Bad Mother Shucker's food truck at Ambler Beer Co, good stuff! Watched HLN's Very Scary People (murder docu series), re-watching Schitt's Creek (wife didn't see),  baseball.. 

Q: How about you? Anything exciting outside of running? Any adventures? binge watching anything?

Weekly Summary:

Miles: weekly 50 miles running 

Year to Date: 884 miles running

Hill Goal (for the yr):   52034/100k elevation gain. Initial goal 100k to beat last yr's 98k. 

Strength Training: Goal 180 minutes, 191 minutes completed. What type of strength training do I do? Core: crunches, planks, leg raises. Weights: biceps, triceps, shoulders, chest. 

Hydration Goal:  7 days 

Foam Roll: 3 days 

Training Plan:  Loosely following the below plan structure until it's time to follow for a race. 

Image from Coach Jenny Hadfield

Race Schedule: 

Nothing in the immediate future, but I am toying with the idea of running the Delaware Running Festival marathon on June 13. Have enough time to recover, and get a few long runs in. It's a matter of making sure my personal plans are clear with this late of notice. And if I really want to run that far in June temps.

Further down the line:

10.17.2021 - NJ Marathon - deferral from spring 2020. 

11.21.2021 - Philadelphia Marathon - deferral from 2020 (registered the day after 2019's race!). 

Be sure to check out my Race and Gear discount pages from my blog site. #BibRavePro ;)

Good luck to everyone with training! Kick some butt! 

If you do any races(virtual or IRL), please remember to review them on BibRave.com!