Happy Chilly Day!!
Marc and I got our Christmas tree up on Sunday evening. We stayed up late so we could get it done…..but the Pumpkin Hot Cocoa made up for that.
Marc picked out a great one!!
And he did a great job of tying it down.
(You’ll have to try my ecipe for Pumpkin Hot Cocoa it’s great so I will have to post it soon!!)
The temperatures are dropping in the inland northwest. A 13 degree run this morning with the wind chill. When you layer properly it’s not too bad. At least here the weather doesn’t stay cold. In the Inland Northwest we only have a couple weeks of really cold weather, maybe getting to 0. Most the time it stays around 20 for lows and 30s for the high. Again, when layered properly and with hand warmers in the gloves, it’s really not that warm cold.
I am getting closer and closer to my goal of 2013 miles for the year. Can’t wait to set my goal of 2014 for next year. I have nearly 60 miles left to finish. Hopefully I can get in close to 50 this week.
Last week was a lower mileage week for me. I didn’t get my long run in on Saturday, because my hamstring has been giving my grief. I don’t know why it has been so tight and achy lately, but it hurts to run. It hurts even more when it’s cold out. I decided to give it a breather on Saturday morning and did some alternate cardio and strength.
Sunday was an easy 5 before church followed by 100 burpees for Elf4Health….that resulted in burning bum and thighs. My foam roller and roll recovery will be put to use in the next few days or weeks.
My old employer is out of town so I am keeping their dog active. They have a visla. I used to run with her every morning when I worked for them but my new schedule doesn’t really allow for this. So I asked if I could take her after work on some afternoons/early evenings. They are out of town so they asked if I would run with her. Piper’s my new running partner for the week.
She’s great. We ran on the bluff the last couple of days. Once the snow hits, running on the goat trails isn’t really safe, thus I am getting as much running in now on the trails. Piper loves the bluff for the same reasons I do: open space with no stoplights or crosswalks and the freedom to run without being concerned about being hit by oncoming traffic.
I am hoping Marc will be convinced I need a Visla. I mean how can you resist that face?!
We banked in at 7 miles yesterday and 6 miles today.
Sometimes dogs really do make just as good running partners as humans. Piper forges ahead, but she always looks back to make sure I am safe, especially if we encounter anyone on the trails. She runs back to me to make sure I pass safely. On certain parts of the trail she takes the lower trail and I will go higher, and I know she wants to race. She’ll get mad if you follow her on the lower trail.
She could run and run. In the picture below she is waiting at the door to go again.
I should say well behaved dogs make great running partners. I feel safe and I don’t have to be dragged along. I am sure within the next couple of years I will have Marc convinced they are a necessity. 🙂
(sorry for the blurry and fuzzy photos, didn’t have the nice camera with me)
Oh and one last piece of news: I had to order a new laptop. Mine is slowly pooping out on me. I was wanting to try to drag it out as long as I could, but it stopped working on me yesterday. Merry Christmas early to  me!!
Until next time Be Whole and Be Fit…..