Another busy week, but some fun things in there. A movie — I think you might be able to guess which one if you like movies, although it’s a nod to the original; a race, and pierogis!

I’m joining Kim @ Kimrunsonthefly and Deborah @ Confessionsofamotherrunner, and giving thanks for unseasonably cool weather on race day — after a very hot day the day before!
Workouts update
- Monday: Yoga (40 min), Dogwalk, Barre (15 min — I had plans to do Pilates later in the day, yeah, that didn’t happen)
- Tuesday: Dogwalk, Yoga AM (20 min), 6 mile long-er run, short PM Dogwalk (15 min), Yoga PM (20 min)
- Wednesday: Yoga AM (30 min), Dogwalk, PB ST (25 min)
- Thursday: Yoga AM (30 minutes), 3 miles with 4 hill repeats, 4 x 100m strides at end
- Friday: Yoga (45 min), Dogwalk (rest day <== I swear it feels like forever since I’ve had an actual rest day)
- Saturday: Yoga (40 min), .75 mile WU, 3.2 mile 5k (yup, ran a bit long), Dogwalk, Yoga PM (20 min)
- Sunday: Yoga (20 min), PB Walking with Weights (25 min),, Dogwalk, visit to Innisfree
Running Mileage: 14 (NC)
PB = Killer B
TM = Treadmill
WU = warmup
CD = cooldown
SB = Stationary Bike
Running Update

Tuesday Intention: EASY all the way
That was the plan, anyway. I definitely did take it easy with pace, but my Garmin tells a slightly different tale. The first 3 miles were positive splits (slight incline for 3 miles). The last 3 miles weren’t negative splits, but they were all pretty much faster than the previous 3 miles. However my HR was a bit higher than normal. I think that’s just getting used to the slowly warming temps.

Thursay Intention: speed using hills + strides
According to my stats, this was a strange run. Not with pace, but with HR — my Garmin showed me having a higher than normal HR in the first mile — the one where I was just running easy. The next 2 miles HR was pretty normal — the ones where I was running up a hill repeatedly and running strides at the end of the run. I feel fine, but my V02 MAX, according to Garmin, has been low for a while now. Very odd.
I ran longer hill repeats this time: I’d done a Peloton run a while back where the instructor said that running a hill before speedwork can actually help you be speedier during the speed work — I have found that to be true. Although the last mile being the fastest most likely due to those strides.
Basically I wanted to work a little on speed without burning my legs out. I plan to do a 5k this weekend: it starts at 9:30 so I started this run later, too, although not quite that late. I am not at all gunning for a PR, but I know I’ll make an effort to run faster and I like my body to be prepared for that.

Saturday Intention: race by feel
A cold front literally blew in the night before, and despite the windy conditions for the race, I was quite happy with the very cool temps. I’ll recap it on Tuesday.


Favorites of the week
I’m making a dent in that Summer Bucket List already (read about it here) — we did go see Top Gun Maverick this week and we both enjoyed it. It’s the first movie we’ve been to in a theater in about 2 1/2 years — some of that due to my Dad’s decline and eventual death, and most of it due to the Pandemic. I ran my second race of 2022.
A local church was selling pierogis with all sorts of flavors, plus some other Polish food. They were quite busy when I got there — if I’d known how long I would have to wait, I never would have gone! I considered leaving a few times, but you know how it is — you figure you’ve waited this long, you might as well stay the course. That meal ended up being both lunch & dinner — and because I hadn’t had that much to eat post race, I was starving by the time we ate.
Later today I will stop at Innisfree (also on my Summer Bucket list) on my way to my mom. The new aide is taking a week off (yes, already!) for mostly doctor’s appointment, so it’s another new aide rolling in temporarily.
ICYMI: Perhaps you noticed that I filmed this long before it warmed up? Or maybe there’s that bag that’s creeping into the frame — oops! I have lots to share on this Summer Solstice: a Yin Yoga practice to open your chest, shoulders, wrists & more — you know, all the places we don’t focus on enough here, a short meditation for transformation here, a short tutorial on Sphinx Pose here, and a pranayama that can help you cool down (and may calm down night sweats and hot flashes) here.
Coming up on Tuesday & Friday: Tuesday I’m recapping the Good Karma 5k, and on Friday I’m cozying up to the Runfessional.
Enjoy your day.
Congrats on a race. Hope it went well. I almost ran that one but not a fan of a race in the Crossings.
Crazy weather here for sure
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Obviously Crossings is good for me since it’s close, especially since I had to pack up to come down to my mom today. Didn’t have a whole lot of time this weekend.
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HVCC is right around the corner for you too, started earlier and different route to run on. Just sayin. Glad you enjoyed it. We liked our race too.
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HVCC is definitely further away. It’s not far, but not as close as Crossings. All the back & forth to my mom really adds up between gas & tolls.
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I like the idea of a Good Karma race. Great name! I am ambivalent about the solstice. Summer slips away too fast. I haven’t had pierogis in forever!
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I hadn’t had pierogis in forever, too. Good cause, too — although I had to wait far too long for them! I wasn’t anticipating that.
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Good Karma 5K – I love the race name and look forward to reading your recap!
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Apparently they have the same race in multiple locations. I’ve thought about doing it before; glad I finally did.
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Sounds like you had great weather for your race. I was just thinking of the Solstice this week. I love the summer and the long days and the warm weather (even when it’s crazy hot & humid)…but the Solstice is a buzzkill because it signifies the movement towards the “other” season. I just try to embrace and enjoy as much of the summer as I can instead of looking ahead to the colder days.
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There is plenty of Summer ahead of us still! But I get it — definitely not fond of shorter days.
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The Good Karma 5K sounds like a great event!
Sometimes on my treadmill I notice my HR is really high the first 5-10 min, and then settles down, even if I have done a warm-up. Maybe that’s one reason that first mile always feels hard!
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The high HR has only been very recent. It was still high for the race, bu5 at least tha5 was appropriate! Garmin finally nudged up the V02 MAX after that — apparently it thinks I should run much harder more frequently, LOL!
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well a good karma race sounds right up your alley! Hope you had a fun one
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It was fun; thanks!
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I hope you had a great race!
My mom’s mom (my Babcia, polish for grandma) made the best pierogis! And lots of other Polish dishes that I didn’t appreciate growing up…
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There is a woman at this church that actually has a company called Babcia’s Pierogis! She was selling many of the flavors frozen, too. But I had to wait so long for the fresh ones I just wanted to get out of there!
I love pierogis. Used to be one of my go-to meals before long runs.
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I hope the Good Karma race brought you good karma! I think we could all use some of that these days. I’m glad you saw Top Gun Maverick. I did wear a mask during the movie–I’m still just being very cautious.
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I could use some good karma for sure!
We wore masks during the movie too. I still had to come here to my mom’s som8 am more cautious. Although I had to stand on line for a long time for the darn pierogis. I actually wore a mask for that, too. At least it was outside.
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Ooh, I can’t wait for the race recap! I wish we would get a cold front for my next race… but it’s not going to happen. Sounds like you had a great week and crossed some items off your summer bucket race. Sorry about the aide drama (again) but hopefully this week will go smoothly.
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It’s kinda rare for us to have a cold front at this time of year but it was much appreciated!
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That cold front came through right in time for your race! I’m over here hoping for a cool front for one of my summer races but as they are towards the end of July and August I highly doubt it will happen haha.
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Well at least VA (that’s where you at now, right?) isn’t as bad as summer in FL! Still it’s kind of rare around here at this time of the year, too.
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Temps have been up and down here, too, very weird, 80s on Friday, 50s on Saturday, for example! I’m glad I don’t have any races but also glad it cooled down for yours.
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We had the same last week, and lucky for me my race was on Saturday. Those cooler temps did come with fierce winds, though.
Thanks, Liz!
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Top Gun was amazing. I sobbed for the whole last hour.
It’s just gross and hot here. I’m resigned to it, but I’m not happy.
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I can’t imagine running through the Summer in the South — my treadmill would definitely get more of a workout. So you get a gold star for keeping it outside!
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