COACHING & LEARNING

As many of you know, I am a girls high school cross country coach.  And, whether you were aware of this or not, you should know that I truly love my job.  Not only because I love working with young girls to help them achieve their goals.  But also, because while I am doing whatever I can to guide them in running and in life, I am learning so much from them every day.  It's a win-win for me.  Last Monday, one of my runners, I'll call her Susie (I don't think she reads RWM, but if she did, she'd get a kick out of this name), walked up to me with a serious look on her face.  She's not the fastest runner on the team, but she comes and pushes herself every day.  She had not been happy about her last couple races so I knew she wanted to talk strategy.  She said something to the effect of:

"Coach, I'm freaking out here.  I don't know how to approach this race tomorrow.  I was so disappointed last week.  (okay, she might have said 'pissed off').  I just hate how I am always struggling at the end and miserable.  And I hate coming in last every time."

Oh Lordy, I thought to myself.  I can totally relate with this one; on, many, many levels.  It's not often that this particular girls opens up and gets honest with me, so I wanted her to know that I was taking the moment very seriously.  I took her by the shoulders and looked her directly in the eye.  This is what I told her (or at least the gist of it):

"First of all, the WORST thing you can do is compare yourself to others.  You have to want to run for YOU and only you.  It's not how you stack up against the other team or your best friend on the squad. It's getting to the line and wanting to be better than you were last week.  And the only way to do this is to change your mental outlook.  You can't go to the line doubting your ability.  You will be out of the race before it's even begun.  You have to step up, get in the zone, and prove to yourself, no one else, that you have it in you to run a good race, and more importantly, to have fun."

I believe she may have rolled her eyes at me here and said something like:

I try to get fired up, coach, but it always feels like within 2 minutes of the start I am getting passed by everyone else in the race and it sucks.  By the time I get to the hills, I want to give up.  And then everything falls apart after that.

Quick note here...our home course is a beast.  Shortly after the first 800, the hills begin and there are many of them and they are big.  It's really, really hard.  For a runner of any level.

Susie, I said, every time I start a marathon, and I've run 9, I hold back in the beginning so I have some reserves at the end.  For the first half, and sometimes more, of the race, I am getting passed left and right.  It's like I'm a slow car driving in the fast lane and everyone is wondering what the hell I am doing.  But then, for the last 8 miles or so, I tap into that last little bit of energy that I (hopefully) still have from taking it easy at the start.  When I do this, I tend to cross the line feeling strong and satisfied.  I don't come in first, mind you.  But, I don't race to be first.  I race to improve and have a good time.  If I'm not doing that, than something is wrong.

She was quiet at this point and really focused.  I could tell something was sinking in.  Or maybe she was just thinking about a song that would get her pumped up for her race (she's a big music fan).  Honestly, it didn't really matter.  All that mattered was that she wanted things to be different.  And better.  So I continued.

The hills on our course are tough.  You know they are hard for you.  When you take off, you have to put your blinders on and not worry about what everyone else is doing as you tackle them.  If that means you're the last runner for a little while, fine.  You can't stress about it.  You know and I know that if you hold back a little at the start you'll be able to finish strong and feeling good.  More importantly, you have to build up some serious positive energy ahead of time so that when that doubt starts to seep in, which it does for all of us, you can tell it to, excuse my french, "f-off".

She nodded.  So run my own pace?  Yeah, I can do that.  

Yeah, you can, I said.  But you also have to believe that you have it in you, which I know you do, but you tend to forget.  And then you have to let your body take you there.  I don't care what place you come in tomorrow.  All I want is for you to cross the line thinking, hell yeah, that was freakin' awesome.  As your coach, I can only do so much to help get you there.  You have to do the rest.  Come on.  I know you.  You're a badass.  You got this.

She smiled.  Okay.  You're right.  I got this.  Thanks coach.  

She walked back to her buddies with a little skip in her step and her shoulders just a bit higher.  I smiled, too.  No, I thought to myself, thank you.

Listen to this:
Bad Habit - The Kooks  

RACE REVIEW: FALL CLASSIC 5K

Amanda, Myself, Stacey & Jess

#birdsistas

Last Sunday, I met a few of my fellow Oiselle birds over in Cambridge to run the Fall Classic 5K.  Originally, I had planned to skip the race review for this one.  Even though we had a good time hanging out together pre and post race, the weather was brutal, the race itself was sort of "meh" for all of us, and, in the end, I didn't feel like there was a hell of a lot worth sharing.  But then on Wednesday, Jess, one of the birds who ran with me, who also happens to be my neighbor, came over to grab her race shirt which she'd left in my car.  After we got to talking, the race stories started flowing and some good laughs were had between us.  I then realized that no race is not worth re-capping.  No matter what does or doesn't happen.  Because, really, something always happens.  And usually, when you throw in multiple women who like to have a good time together, there are some quality tales to tell.  True, none of us crossed the line with a new PR or setting any world records,  but it was still a boat load of fun.  Okay, there might have been a few other issues....

So what if my only hair elastic fell in the urinal when I peed for the first time?  That's what hand sanitizer is for, right?
So what if the line for the port-o-pottys was so long when we got back after our warmup that Amanda and I had to sneak over to a condo complex and squat in the bushes so we wouldn't miss the start?  That was a wee bit awkward and slightly inappropriate.
So what if it was 80 degrees along with 100% humidity and all of us were totally soaked through before the race began?  That pretty much sucked.
So what if the race was so big (over 1400 runners) that it took us 10 seconds to cross the start and a solid 30 more to bob and weave until we had some space to run.  That was stressful.
So what if I looked like death warmed over at the finish?  Not cute (see left)
So what if I overheated at the end and had this weird desire to take off all of my clothes and run through Cambridge naked?  Again, awkward.
So what if Amanda threw up on her new singlet in the finish shoot?  Major bummer.  Though, she still managed to look super cute in the photo.  How did she DO that?
So what if we were all disappointed with our times?  Ain't no one gonna PR in that "fall" heat.
So what if Jess had to run 9 more miles in the worst possible weather AFTER the race to finish up her scheduled long run which meant she couldn't stay and have coffee with us.  Not fair at all.  Oh wait, she chooses to train for marathons.
So what if the bakery we went to afterwards was out of bread so I couldn't get an egg sandwich?  Wait, what?

What does matter is that we all motivated, coming together from several different corners of MA (huge thanks to Stacey for making the 1.5 hr trek), ran our guts out (literally), managed to take a good team photo (see above) and had some solid conversations over good coffee afterwards.  Soooooo, that's what.

Listen to this:
Thousand Miles - Tove Lo 

RWR: MEET FASTK8

Shortly after I became a Oiselle ambassador, Kate Grace joined their elite racing team also known as HAUTE VOLÉE, which is French for 'high flyer'.  At the time, I didn't recognize her name.  But, that means nothing, as I was not tracking recent college graduates who are now running professionally.  Not that I wouldn't love to do this.  It did not take long, however, for Kate to become a household name.  Well, in the world of runners, at least.  In her first year as a pro runner, she hit the track running, literally, and was instantly a mad force to be reckoned with.  I didn't ask her if I could post her personal bests but I (sorry Kate) just can't resist.  Check out these times:

Frequent flyer, Kate Grace

800m: 1:59:47

1500: 4:07:35

Mile: 4:28:79

3000m: 8:55:06

Seriously???  Not only is she smokin' fast.  But she's also super chill, ridiculously sweet and gorgeous.  She is the real deal, folks.  And I am thrilled for you to meet her.  After that, you should follow her as she's got a one-way ticket to awesome city and you're gonna want to be along for the ride.  And the best part?  She's a complete music junkie.  Check out the various artists she'd like to have dinner with and you'll see what I mean.  Imagine that dinner party?  Side note, she has some serious opinions about ice cream.  Okay, that's enough from me, meet Kate, a runner who rocks.

RWR: KATE GRACE

Name: Kate Grace
Where you're from: Los Angeles, CA
Where you reside now: Bend, OR (and Seattle a bit)
Age: 25
Occupation: Athlete, Flockstar
Blog/website: runmantra.tumblr.com, sexyankle.tumblr.com (for run-related travels)

RUNNING & MUSIC:
What do you love most about running?
Feeling like I am completely in the moment, powerful, in a rhythm.

What do you love most about music? 
Same as above.

Kate, in the zone.

KATE'S FAVORITES:
Band (current, all time or both): Not "favorite" necessarily, but I could listen to Josh Ritter all the time.
Album (current, all time or both): ack.
Race venue: The Armory, NYC
Music venue: Hollywood Bowl.  I like outdoor venues.
Race distance: 1500
Show you've seen live? Oof. I haven't been to enough to have a favorite.  As long as the band isn't especially bad live, I enjoy it.
Ice cream flavor: I go for something with a hint of chocolate and maybe a crunch.  Mint chocolate, Stracciatella (photo), Peanut Butter cup, Chunky Monkey, Coconut/almond/chocolate combos. And Coffee flavors.

THIS OR THAT?
Sweet or salty: Salty
Live or recorded: Recorded
Coffee or tea: ooo. Both. Different functions. Tea over straight coffee. Lattes and cappuccinos over everything. Maybe i just prefer milk.
Summer or winter: Fall. ;)



MORE MUSIC INFO:
Which band or artist would you go see tonight if you could? Ingrid Michaelson

Which band or artist (wait...but no longer alive or playing together) would you go see tonight if you could? I mean, The Beatles.

Which band or artist would you like to have dinner with tonight if you could? Mmm.  Paul Simon.  Elton John.  Randy Newman.  Pete Seeger.  Leonard Cohen.  Jennifer Lopez.  Taylor Swift.  Miley Cyrus.  Lady Gaga.  Pink.  Nicki Minaj.  Kanye West.  Beyonce.  Ed Sheeran.  Hell, Beethoven.  Not necessarily for their music.

Which band or artist would you like to be playing alongside you during your next race (or long run)? Pitbull (right) might win for frequency over the years on my workout playlists.


Top 5 Songs for running, dancing or both? *
This is always changing. that's issue with pop songs... they're like cheap clothes or ipods... kind of a built-in obsolescence. Right now (although, I think I'm at the end of my cycle with these ones... getting overplayed):
Ghost - Ella Henderson
Bang Bang - Nicki, Jesse, Ariana
Black Widow - Iggy and Rita
All about that Bass - Meghan Trainor

+ a few throw backs that i'm in to right now for fun runs
Proud Mary - Tina Turner
Rockin' Robin - Bobby Day
Take Me Home, Country Roads - John Denver
Call Your Girlfriend - Robyn
Happy Ending - Mika
Rebellion - Arcade fire

+ just made a list of songs that have ~180 bpm (or 90) ... so, they link up with a running stride.
Bang Bang - K'naan, Adam Levine
Such Great Heights - The Postal Service
The Middle  - Jimmy Eat World
Paper Planes - MIA
Fidelity - Regina Spektor
Untouched - The Veronicas

Last 5 Songs you listened to today?
The pop ones ;)

* I will add the links to these songs later today.  Need to switch gears for a bit.  Check back later and they'll be up there.  Thx for your patience.

LACKING SLEEP, NOT MUSIC

Sleeping on the job. Busted by my neighbor.

Between our new puppy, who still gets up in the middle of the night to pee, and my 9 year old who is suffering with allergies and has a brutal cough, I can't seem to get ahead of the eight ball in the sleep department since the RTB relay.  Confession: I went to bed before my kids on Wednesday night.  Grace is 7, so... yeah.  Oh well.  It is what it is.  The bummer, though, is that I'm still in the throws of marathon training and the next couple weeks, in particular, are far and away the most critical.  It always happens this way, doesn't it?  In the end, the mom role, trumps the marathon role, so I'm just keeping my head down, plowing on and doing the best that I can on whatever sleep I can get.  Even if it is a 5 minute snooze in my car as my kids are packing up for school (see photo). As long as it's followed by a second or third cup of coffee, I'm usually all good.  Somehow, despite my high level of exhaustion and my many balls in the air, I have still managed to dig up a s**tload of good, new music.  We all have our priorities, right?  Music gets me fired up both for running and for simply getting out the door in the morning.  New music takes it to the next level.  Turn up the volume and throw in some dance moves and I'm ready to roll.  Sleep?  It's overrated.  Music?  I can never get enough.  Happy Friday.  Rock on.

WAKE UP & KEEP DREAMING

All of You - Betty Who  

Celeste - Ezra Vine  

Cadillac, Cadillac - Train  

All Over - Cruisr  

Inferno (feat. Lizzie Plapinger) - Sir Sly 

Out of My Mind - The Madden Brothers  

Leave it Alone - White Arrows  

Class Historian - Broncho  

RACE REVIEW: NH RTB RELAY

This past week-end, I had the good fortune of participating in the NH Reach the Beach Relay as a member of the amazing NH State Parks Team.  In the winter, I work up at Cannon Mountain, which is part of the beautiful Franconia Notch State Park, hence my connection to the team.  This was my second time running with this group and the experience was as good if not better than the first.  For the record, the first time was epic, so you now have a sense of what I mean.  In case you aren't familiar with the RTB Relay series, here is the low down.  The New Hampshire race begins in Franconia, up at the Cannon mountain ski area.  Each team has 12 runners (unless you are totally nuts and you're on an ultra team), who all complete 3 legs of various distances and degrees of difficulty within about 24 hours, finishing down in Hampton Beach, NH.  Back in 2012, I ran Leg #5, which put me in Van #1.  I loved my legs and, by the end of the race, I also loved everyone in my van.  This year, I was assigned to Leg #7, which put me in Van #2 with a whole new cast of characters.  Prior to the race, I was a wee bit nervous about the switch.  But, that said, I was also fired up to see a new part of the course this time around and to hang with a new crew, so I did my best to embrace the change.  Without going in to too much detail, (okay, fine, it's a lot of detail), here's a few race highlights that I felt were worth sharing.

Trying on my team uniform with Mike W. You can't tell that his singlet is skin tight because it blends with his sweatshirt.  You can, however, see that I look like I'm wearing my dad's pants because I ordered the wrong size.  This provided much laughter for most of the race, particularly for Stacey.

Showing off our newly painted van as we were getting ready to head out.  Painting a car feels strange but is a LOT of fun.

Hanging in the playground near the Attitash pass zone with the crew from Van 1.  We were goofing off as we waited for Corey to run by so we could cheer for him.  It was fun to have the whole team together for a bit here....including the dead guy with the safety vest on who was an addition to our crew this year.

The night sky around 6:00pm, just before my first run.  The photo doesn't do it justice.  I could not wait to take off at this point.

Waiting in the pass zone to receive the slap bracelet from Michelle C.  Note that I'm wearing headphones.  In 2012, we were not allowed to listen to music.  When Ragnar took over the race, the rules were changed.  HALLELUJAH!

Drinking the nectar of the Gods (aka coffee) after having slept for one hour between my 2nd and 3rd run.  Trying to get myself ready to rock for my last 2.4 mile push.  I'd slept a total of 3 hours at this point since Friday morning.  It was the best coffee ever.  Note how I'm cradling the cup.  Thank you Circle K.

Just finished my last run.  Scott is thrilled for me.  Adam, he's not so sure.  I was over the moon and beyond giddy.  Plus I was hopped up on licorice and caffeine.  Not a good combo.  But, I can't say it didn't help.  Hopefully, my kids won't read this.

NH State Parks Team 2014

Place: 28th Overall, 4th in Mixed Open Division

Time: 25 hours 37 minutes (7:25 avg pace)

As you would expect, you learn a lot about the other people in your van when you spend 24 hours with them in stupidly tight quarters.  I can't say I didn't miss being with my old team members in Van #1 (especially you, Stacey), but it was a hell of a lot of fun to spend time with the Van  #2 crew this time around.  Here's a few things I learned about my Van 2 homies:

First row: Grant, Mary, Me, Cait

Second Row: Scott, Will, Adam

Grant never goes anywhere without a video camera in his hand.  I'm pretty sure he sleeps with his hand on the button.  He loves to rock out to reggae music and he's hell on wheels on the road despite running maybe 15 miles a week (damn him).

Mary, who is Gran't wife, drinks a ridiculous amount of water and has to pee every 10 minutes.  She must have a wooden leg because she's thin as a rail but she eats more than all of us.  She flies, literally, the minute her feet hit the pavement.

Cait is easily the most chill runner/person in the group.  Currently in grad school, she had very little time to train this summer.  But it was all good.  She just slid in and did her thing.  She pouts in many of her photos and yet she's one of the more positive people I know.  Hmmm.

Scott, a married dad of 3 in his 50s, runs like he's in his 30s.  Translation: he's lightening fast.  I was in awe of him the whole time.  He also knows EVERYBODY.  Literally.  Every stop, he'd run into someone that he knew.  People would flag him down from afar to say "hi" and catch up.  It was nuts.

Will, our trusty driver (also Cait's twin brother), is the master organizer.  He kept us all in line and knew exactly when the other runners would be coming and going right down to the second.  It was eerie.  He also doesn't eat bread because it makes him tired, so he had several lettuce and meat sandwiches throughout the day.  I'm pretty sure he doesn't sleep either, but I don't know because I do.

Adam has the best legs of the crew.  Not race legs, mind you.  I'm referring to his actual legs.  Even from afar, people would comment on how great his legs were.  He also has the neatest and most organized apartment of anyone I have ever met.  His mom taught him really, REALLY, well.  For the record, he prefers 2 ply toilet paper.

It doesn't matter what kind of runner you are.  If you want to have an adventure with a bunch of people who share the same goals (in this case having a freakin' blast), then you should put this race on your bucket list.  It's that good.

Rock on, team.  I love ya!

Listen to this:
YOUR HOUSE - Steel Pulse  

RACE PREVIEW: NH RTB RELAY 2014

At 6:15 this evening, I will be hopping on a bus and heading up to Franconia, NH for the Ragnar Reach the Beach Relay, as a member of the NH State Parks Team.  Twelve of us, along with hundreds of other RTB teams, will be covering 200 miles (3 legs each) in 24 hours, starting at Cannon Mountain and finishing in Hampton Beach, NH.  On Friday at 11:45am we'll be off and running.  Literally.

When we aren't running we will be eating, sleeping...basically living out of our vans, which are driven by our trusty drivers who run the entire logistical show.  In other words, we would be totally screwed without them.  Thank you drivers!

NH State Park Bloggers

2012

I participated in this race for the first time back in 2012 with the crew you see in the photo above.  The experience was epic. (click here for the story) Last year, I wasn't able to participate due to a conflict with work.  I was totally crushed and vowed never to let that happen again.  Fortunately, my sweet, loving, understanding team (minus a few of the original members along with a couple of new ones) was kind enough to let me back on.  Bless them.  

Huge shout out to Oiselle, NUUN, 

Feetures, & Runnerbox

I am officially packed and ready to go with more gear than an average person would know what to do with.  I am giddy.  And I am incredibly grateful...to my husband for being so ridiculously understanding and willing to deal, to my kids for thinking mom is cool and not giving me a hard time about missing their soccer games this week-end, to the girls on the LEX XC squad who both support my athletic endeavors and, more importantly, don't give me the hairy eyeball when I'm not at practice, and to my RTB team for letting me rejoin this awesome madness that is Reach the Beach.

YEEEEEEEEEEEHAW!  It's on.  GO TEAM! 

Listen to this:

All We Need - Odesza (feat. Shy Girls)  

MONDAY RUN DOWN

I've recently reconnected with an old high school classmate who is currently training for her first marathon.  No matter who you are, preparing for a marathon is rough.  Add the fact that you're a mom with two small children to the mix, and it can be (her words here) grueling.  She very kindly let me know that she is both inspired and entertained by this blog and that she appreciates my honesty about motherhood and running.  I wrote her back to thank her and to let her know that it does get easier, particularly as the kids get older.  This is, of course, assuming that she continues down the marathon road, which many of us tend to do once we've tasted the kool-aid.  No matter who you are or where you are in your life, marathon training is a wild and crazy process from the first run all the way up to the race itself.  But, I don't think any of us can really get through it unless we buckle up and enjoy the ride.  Yes, it's a struggle.  In many, MANY, ways.  But, the greater the struggle, the greater the reward, right?  Yesterday, I had to run 21 miles.  It was the 5th of my 6 long runs in preparation for my upcoming October marathon.  As I tackled this run, and the rest of my day, I thought of Sharon, who was likely going through the same motions.  I thought it would be worth sharing how my day unfolded, if only so she could relate and maybe get a good laugh in.  So, Sharon, this one is for you and to all the other marathon moms out there as well.  Run on, ladies!

REBECCA'S MONDAY RUN DOWN

AM
3:30 Woke up with new puppy and took her out to pee.
6:00 Woke up again, this time for good.
6:01 Made and drank coffee.
6:03 Took puppy out for another quick pee. (puppies pee a lot)
6:15 Said good morning to Rosie and Grace, who are up an hour earlier than usual for no reason.
6:30 Made a bargain with my girls that if they got changed, ate breakfast, brushed their teeth, got their shoes on, packed up their lunches and were ready to go by the time I got back from walking the dog, they could watch a show.
7:00 Walked both dogs with a much needed second cup of coffee.
8:00 Dropped both girls off at school.
8:30 Mentally prepared myself to be out on the road for 3+ hours (I don't remember exactly what I did here, but it involved loud music and dancing)
8:15 Ran 21 miles with my good buddy and running partner Kirsten H.
PM
12:30 Got home, chugged some chocolate milk, shoveled a Picky Bar in, grabbed my bags and hit the grocery store.  Not an easy turnaround.
12:40 Shuffled through the grocery store, likely talking to myself out loud while trying to keep my eyelids open.  Anyone who happened to see me was probably a bit worried.
1:30 Wolfed down half a sandwich in the check out line.
2:00 Said a quick "hi" to the mom of one of my Lex XC runners, who was also shopping, which then turned into a 15 conversation about the team.
2:15 Flew home (safely, of course) and realized that I needed to get my groceries unloaded and unpacked in 10 minutes tops in order to make it to XC practice on time.  No pressure.
2:30 Showered, stretched and iced.
Ah ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha.....that was a good one, right?  Who has time for that?
2:30 Splashed water on my face, grabbed a Kona NUUN and left for work in the same running clothes I'd been wearing since 7:00am.  Super cute.
3:00 Got to practice with 5 minutes to spare.
5:15 Finally made it back home.
5:17 Hopped in the shower. (OMG did I need that)
5:30 Threw on my super chic runner mom uniform of sweatpants, compression socks and a hoodie and saddled up for the rest of the evening.

#SMOKIN'

Listen to this:
Middle of the Night* - Vinyl Thief  

* Note: this is currently a FREE DOWNLOAD on Soundcloud.

A HAIKU

One of the reasons I run on a regular basis is to set a good example for my girls, Rosie (age 9) and Grace (age 7).  I won't pretend it's the main reason.  But, it's up there.  When they were really little, they often used to cry when I told them I was going out for a run.  There must have been a part of them that worried I wasn't coming back, or, more likely, they just wanted me stay home and continue to give them my undivided attention.  Which is why I needed to go.  It always used to break my heart a little to see them get upset, but once I hit the road, on my own, I would start to get the mental and physical release that I was craving and I was able to put my guilt aside, if only for a little while.  Over time, the girls began to understand that, regardless of what they wanted or needed, unless it was an emergency, I was going to go for a run.  As they got older, they began to accept it as just something that mom does.  And sometimes, they had their own fun with it, at my expense.

Waiting patiently for me to get back from a run...

...with water balloons

Ready. Aim. Fire!

When I first started running marathons, shortly after my second daughter was born, my husband used to bring them along to watch and cheer.  Depending on the size of the race, they would see me anywhere from 1-3 times.

Waiting.... (Rosie)

.... still waiting (Grace)

... and finally the dandelion pass off was successful.

They might see me for about 2 minutes, maybe give me a hug or pass off some weeds...er...flowers, and then they'd have to wait around for me to finish which would take hours.  The result?  They would get bored out of their minds, very tired and hungry.  (aka the triple threat)  Not fun for them and really painful for dad.  Today, when I head off to a race of any distance, they will give me a high five and tell me good luck but they no longer come and watch. They've got other stuff going on and, honestly, they don't really want to stand around waiting to see mom run by.  I get it.  And I'm okay with it.  But all that said, I do think my drive as a runner is a good influence on them.  Both of them play sports....soccer, gymnastics, skiing to name a few.  While my husband and I try not to put pressure on them, we do encourage them to do their best and have fun.  Funny, that is exactly what I encourage myself to do every time I head out for a race.  Go figure.  This week, I was sorting through Grace's school work from last year, most of it pretty standard stuff, ready to be recycled.  But, then I came across a poem that Grace had written.  A Haiku, to be exact.  It literally stopped me in my tracks.  I read it.  And then I read it again.  I couldn't help but smile.  Something, I thought, something is sinking in.  I don't know exactly what or how, but I know it's good.  So, I'm going to keep on running.  For me, sure.  But also, for them.

GAME.  

HAVE FUN.  

DO NOT QUIT.  

NEVER GIVE UP.  

RUN!  

Listen to this:
From the Night - Stars  

4 DOWN, 2 TO GO

Don't stop, no, I'll never give up

And I'll never look back, just hold your head up

And if it gets rough, it's time to get rough

~ Haim, 'Falling'

DATE: 8/31

TIME: 7:30 AM

TEMP: 76℉

DEWPOINT: Pea soup

WORKOUT: 21 Miles

BREAKDOWN IN #s

1 - 3am wakeup with the new puppy (brutal)

1 - double cappuccino

2 - pieces of toast with honey

1 - Lemonade NUUN

1 - pre-run pep talk w/ myself

4 - miles with my dear friend Melissa S. (bless her)

1 - angry hand gesture from a driver to move out of her way

4 - water stops

1 - bathroom stop

2 - GUs

1 - high five from a kid in stroller (awesome)

1 - slight drop in humidity (good)

1 -  break in the clouds (not good)

1 - near run in with a cyclist (stressful)

1 - hairy eyeball from a resident in a private neighborhood

(my bad, but I needed the miles)

more hills than anyone should have to deal with

1 - sunburned shoulder

1 - wrong turn

17 - miles solo

39 - songs

 2 hours 54 minutes...

... & a partridge in a pear tree

TOTAL LONG RUNS (18+): 6

4 down, 2 to go

Listen to this:
Miracle - Ghost Beach