Catching Up Over July Coffee

July 1, 2022 by 14 Comments

How is it possible that it’s already July?!

I’m kicking off the new month with a little catch-up over coffee, joining Coco and Deborah for the Ultimate Coffee Date.  It’s also time for another edition of Fit Five Friday so let’s make it a two-fer and chat! (This post contains affiliate links).

Catching up over July Coffee

Over coffee I would tell you that now that the summer is in full swing, I am working on perfecting my margarita recipes. There are so many options from classic to spicy, straight or frozen, and every possible fruit in between! While I do enjoy a nice sipping tequila, margaritas, in my opinion, are the perfect summer cocktail.

Over coffee I would tell you that thanks to all the time I’m spending in traffic commuting to and from work, I am learning to embrace audio books. I recently finished Deena Kastor’s “Let Your Mind Run” and “The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo” by Taylor Jenkins Reid. I enjoyed both books – I think Reid’s book especially would make a great summer beach read!

And, speaking of books, over coffee I would tell you that I am just about halfway through my professional certificate coursework. I am not going to lie, it definitely took a minute to shift into a “classroom” mindset, but I’m really enjoying it!

Over coffee, I would tell you how excited I am to have essentially half the month off from work! Our organization is closing for the week of July 4th and then my family is on vacation for a week later in the month. The timing is such that I’ll be working every other week!

Over coffee, I would tell you that for our vacation we’re looking forward to returning to some time in the mountains at Stowe. We’ve booked the same beautiful townhouse we stayed in last year, and can’t wait to spend time hiking, kayaking, and hopefully a day trip to Montreal (last year the Canadian border was closed).

What would you tell me over coffee? What’s your favorite summer cocktail?

Welcome to Fit Five Friday!

Join My First 5K and More, Running With Attitude, Run Laugh Eat Pie, Runs with Pugs, and Zenaida every Friday for Fit Five Friday! Please share the link-up love by visiting and commenting on your hosts and at least two other Fit Five Friday bloggers!

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Filed Under: #FitFiveFriday, Ultimate coffee date

Week 25 – Enjoying a Little Staycation

June 26, 2022 by 15 Comments

This week brought some much-needed time off!

My office was closed Monday for the Juneteenth holiday and then I took Thursday through this upcoming Monday off for an extended weekend. It’s been bliss to have some downtime. There has been lots of time spent on the deck – reading and catching up on my coursework; some fun family time; finally got to see Top Gun Maverik, and I have a day planned to catch up with a friend for tomorrow!

This week was also brought the official start of summer and the heat and humidity made an appearance in full force…just in time for race day.

I’m linking up with Kim and Deborah for the Weekly Run Down. Here’s a quick look at how things played out.

Week 25 – Enjoying a Little Staycation

Full disclosure this photo is from last Sunday’s run – but it was also the best run of the week!

Monday — 3-mile walk, Core & Stretch.
Tuesday — 1.5-mile walk & Upper Body Strength.
Wednesday — Peloton ride, 1-mile walk, Core & Stretch.
Thursday — 3.5-mile run & Upper Body Strength.
Friday — 3.6-mile run, Core & Stretch.
Saturday — 2.5-mile walk, otherwise rest.
Sunday — BAA 10K. I’ll recap this race at a later date but suffice it to say … Heat & Humidity 1, Michelle 0.

My #OptOutside streak hit Day 88 today, and the #3for31 Challenge continues to roll along.

In case you missed it:

Some June Runfessions

Tell me something about your week? Do you have any time off planned?

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Filed Under: Weekly Run Down

Some June Runfessions

June 24, 2022 by 23 Comments

Happy Friday! It’s time for another edition of Fit Five Friday, – and since it’s the last Friday of the month, I’m linking up with Marcia to share a couple of Runfessions. So let’s dive in!

Some June Runfessions

I runfess that I’m wavering a bit on my fall race plans. Back in February, I highlighted some races I wanted to run this year – that list includes the Philadelphia Distance Run – a September half marathon. Back in February the humidity that is often still hanging around in September seemed like a distant memory. Well now that things are starting to heat up, the thought of a steamy September half is giving me pause.

It’s not quite there yet, but you can feel it coming!

I runfess that I will definitely be waiting a while before registering – let’s see how a couple of those 10-mile long runs (in July!) go first. I’m also looking for some late fall options.

I runfess that I’m reaching the end of my rope with my Garmin Venu Sq. A couple of weeks ago in mid-run, I looked down at my watch to see a blue triangle – the watch had crashed, despite having a fully charged battery. I stopped and fought to get it to reset but my run was gone. I wrote it off as a fluke…until it happened again…and again. The watch isn’t even a year old – the Apple watch is starting to look really good to me.

 

Any runfessions to share? Do you have your fall races set yet?

Welcome to Fit Five Friday!
Join My First 5K and More, Running With Attitude, Run Laugh Eat Pie, Runs with Pugs, and Zenaida every Friday for Fit Five Friday! Please be sure to show your hosts some love and visit some of the other bloggers in the link-up.

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Filed Under: #FitFiveFriday, Runfessions

Five Ways to Revive Your 2022 Goals

June 17, 2022 by 7 Comments

Can you believe that we are quickly approaching the halfway mark of 2022?!

As you reach the midway point of the year, it seems like a natural time to reflect and ask how are you doing with those goals and resolutions you set at the beginning of the year. Are they still top of mind? Are you making progress or have some of them slipped off your radar?

If some of your goals got pushed to the backburner, then consider these five ways to get back on track.

Five Ways to Revive Your 2022 Goals

Assess — If you have goals that you have not paid much attention to it’s important to first stop to consider if those goals are still important to you. What was your why for setting the goal in the first place? If you find that some goals just don’t resonate with you anymore, then there’s no crime in letting them go.

Prioritize — It’s easy to get ambitious at the start of a new year and set too many goals at once. It’s important to be realistic about the demands on your time and to recognize that trying to spread yourself too thin could leave you with goals unfulfilled. By setting priorities, you can create a realistic timeline mapping out all of the steps needed to move you closer to your goals and then determine a reasonable action plan.

Track Your Progress — According to a 2014 study, 33% of those who failed to achieve their goals did not track their progress. Use an app, habit tracker, or good old notebook to set up a system that will help you consistently track your progress.

Evaluate — Set aside time on a consistent basis to review your progress so you can see what’s working and where you may be struggling or need to consider a new approach.

Celebrate Along the Way — While the journey to achieving your goal may be challenging it should also include moments of joy. It’s important to celebrate wins, both big and small, along the way. Consider rewarding yourself when you hit key milestones. At the end of the day, if it’s not fun, it’s not worth doing!

 

Welcome to Fit Five Friday!

Join My First 5K and More, Running With Attitude, Run Laugh Eat Pie, Runs with Pugs, and Zenaida every Friday for Fit Five Friday! Please share the link-up love by visiting and commenting on your hosts and at least two other Fit Five Friday bloggers!

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter


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Filed Under: #FitFiveFriday, goals

A Low-key Week

June 12, 2022 by 10 Comments

“Mulch is evil” – my massage therapist declared as she tried to work out whatever madness had settled into my upper right quad.

If you caught last week’s WRD then you know that I had to cut my “long” run short …the day after I spent an afternoon hauling mulch around my flower beds. While I didn’t feel it at the time, I had clearly tweaked something and it reared its ugly head during last Sunday’s run. Given how angry my quad felt, I decided to not poke the bear and didn’t attempt a run until Friday this week. Here’s how my week in fitness played out.

Week 23 — A Low-key Week

Monday — 4-mile walk, Core & Stretch.
Tuesday — 3.5-mile walk. This was so needed after lots of time in my car commuting and sitting in meetings.
Wednesday — 3.2-mile walk, Lower Body Strength, Core & Stretch.
Thursday —  3-mile walk and Peloton Bike. Plus a post-work massage.
Friday — 3.2-mile run, 1-mile walk, Core & Stretch. The hills on my route and my quad were not a great match, but I got through the run.
Saturday — 3-mile walk, Upper Body Strength & Stretch.
Sunday — 6-mile run. Although my quad felt a little iffy at the start, it settled down quickly and all-in-all the run felt pretty good.

I think this low-key week was just what my quad needed. And, I was still able to keep up with the #3for31 Challenge and my #OptOutside Streak (Day 43) – so I’m calling this week a win! My plan for the upcoming week is to return to my usual run schedule and continue to pay extra attention to stretching and time with my massage gun.

In case you missed it:

Boston’s Run to Remember 5 Mile Race Recap

How was your week?

I’m linking up with Kim and Deborah for the Weekly Run Down. Join Us!

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Filed Under: #3for31, #OptOutside, Weekly Run Down

Boston’s Run to Remember 5-Miler Race Recap

June 10, 2022 by 10 Comments

Happy Friday!

For this week’s Fit Five Friday I’m sharing my race recap from one of my favorite races – Boston’s Run to Remember!

Boston’s Run to Remember 5-Miler Race Recap

Boston’s Run to Remember is held annually on the Sunday of Memorial Day Weekend as a tribute to fallen 1st Responders. Proceeds from the race benefit local youth and community programs supported by our 1st Responders and several local charities, including the Alzheimer’s Association, Cops for Kids With Cancer, Muscular Dystrophy, the Boy’s and Girl’s Club, and Sole Train (a youth mentoring program). The race features both a half marathon and a 5-mile option. In fact, it was my first half marathon ever! It’s definitely a sentimental favorite 🙂

After being virtual for the past two years, I was happy to see this race return, even in a more scaled-down fashion. While Boston’s Seaport World Trade Center has always served as the host for the race expo, this year the Center is under a major renovation so there was no expo. I didn’t really miss the expo, and actually really appreciated the satellite locations they set up for bib pick up. It was nice to swing into a local running store and pick up my bib and t-shirt vs driving into downtown Boston on a holiday weekend! The one aspect of the expo I did miss, however, was seeing the memorial banners with the list of all of the names of fallen 1st responders and some photos that were always on display – a great reminder of what the race is about.

Race Day

With a 7 am start, I was up and out the door by 5:30. My husband J offered to come with me and was a real trooper getting up so early on a Sunday. The ride into the city was easy and we decided to park at the Seaport Hotel, which was right near the starting line. We had parked there for previous races – it’s a little pricey, but you can’t beat clean indoor bathrooms and the comfortable lounge where we could hang out until the start.

About 10 minutes before the start I said goodbye to J, passed through the security barriers, and worked my way up into the middle of the 2nd wave. Following the singing of Amazing Grace and the National Anthem, Wave 1 was off.

Ready to run!

A couple of minutes later, my wave followed. Unfortunately, there were none of the usual pace markers for runners to self-seed so the start was chaotic – I spent most of the first half mile dodging and weaving until I could finally find some open space to settle into my run. I had planned to use the run/walk intervals (6:30 run; 45 sec walk) I’ve been using for the past few months, but in trying to find space in that first mile I decided to just get past the first-mile marker before switching to the intervals.

The 5-mile course winds through the streets of Boston, starting and ending along Seaport Boulevard. The course runs out along the waterfront and then takes runners past Faneuil Hall, through Beacon Hill, then past the Public Garden before looping through the financial district and returning to the waterfront. It’s a great tour of the city and I was happy to be feeling really good so I could enjoy it. With the cluster of runners stretching out after the first mile, miles 2 – 4 seem to click along. I spent most of the race playing leap frog with a team of runners from a local high school and fed off of their energy.

As we made the left turn on Atlantic Ave heading back to the waterfront,  I made a final push over the bridge, putting some distance between me and the team. Just then I heard J call my name just as I hit the final stretch towards the finish line.

Recapping Boston's Run to Remember 5 Miler #FitFiveFriday #Bibchat #BostonRunning Share on X

There were plenty of volunteers on hand to hand out medals and water. Runners were asked to continue down Seaport Blvd. towards a park a couple of blocks down where they could reunite with family. There were more volunteers handing out snack bags with a mix of granola bars, dried fruit snacks, and Oreos.

Overall this race is always really well done and it was a lot of fun to get back out on this course. As I have often said, if you ever plan to be in Boston on Memorial Day weekend, I highly encourage you to register for this one!

Do you have a favorite race?

Welcome to Fit Five Friday!

Join My First 5K and More, Running With Attitude, Run Laugh Eat Pie, Runs with Pugs, and Zenaida every Friday for Fit Five Friday! Please share the link-up love by visiting and commenting on your hosts and at least two other Fit Five Friday bloggers!

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Filed Under: #FitFiveFriday, Boston's Run to Remember, race report

Ready for June

June 5, 2022 by 17 Comments

Who’s ready for June? I know I am! I always enjoy the start of a new month and the chance to set some new goals. But before we dive into June plans, I’m linking up with Kim and Deborah for the Weekly Run Down.

Week 22 – Ready for June

Monday — A little race recovery with a 2.8-mile walk and some yoga.
Tuesday — 1.2-mile walk, otherwise rest day.
Wednesday — 3.2-mile run, Core & Stretch. Celebrated Global Running Day virtually with some blogger friends

A huge thanks to Cari for putting this together!

Thursday — 3.5-mile walk, Upper Body Strength, Core & Stretch.
Friday –– 4-mile run & Stretch.
Saturday — 1.5-mile walk, Full Body Strength & Stretch.
Sunday — 3-mile run. The plan was to run 6, but my quad woke up with a very different plan this morning. I tried to work through it, but I was bargaining with each step and finally decided to shut it down at 3. I have the BAA 10K in 3 weeks so there’s no point in risking aggravating anything.

June Goals

  • Complete the #3for31 Challenge — Peloton instructor Robin first introduced this challenge in December and it was a great way to stay consistent. The challenge is 3 miles on foot (walk, jog, or run) or 30 minutes of movement every day from June 1st through July 1st. Given my current #OptOutside streak (today’s Day 67), I’m planning to do the 3 miles/day option.

  • Return to Consistent Strength Training — With the craziness of my May schedule, strength training sometimes took a backseat, so I am looking to return to a more balanced mix of workouts.
  • Focus on Hill Work —  I’ve got the BAA 10K at the end of this month and while the course is fairly flat, the hill in mile 3 up Comm Ave has given me fits in the past. It doesn’t help that race day is usually hot and this part of the course offers absolutely no shade. The goal this year is to run that hill strong.

What are you looking forward to this month? 

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Filed Under: Global Running Day, goals, Weekly Run Down

Five Things Over June Coffee

June 3, 2022 by 26 Comments

We’re on the cusp of the weekend again – the beauty of a short work week! So it’s time for another edition of Fit Five Friday! And, since it’s the first weekend of the month, I’m joining Coco and Deborah for the Ultimate Coffee Date. It’s rainy and cool this morning so I’m sticking with a mug of hot coffee. Let’s chat!

Five Things Over Coffee

Adventures in Gardening

Over coffee, I would share that all of my work in the garden is starting to pay off! I had completely redesigned one section of my garden last summer and it’s nice to see the Peonies, and Roses already blooming so well.

Over coffee, I would also share that I had some interesting wildlife encounters in the garden lately. There’s a bunny who visits, but I have yet to catch it on film. Then there’s the large snapping turtle who thought one of my front beds would be a good spot to lay her eggs (my husband the honors of returning the turtle to the pond down the road from our house.) And, then there was the snake coiled around the base of one of the rose bushes. We’ve yet to catch him and I’ve stopped wearing flip-flops in the garden…enough said!

Vacation Planning

Over coffee, I would tell you that my husband and I are trying to decide where we want to go on vacation to celebrate our 30th wedding anniversary this fall. Do we head to the Caribbean? Paris? Barcelona? Napa or Sonoma Valley? Other suggestions?

Could we end up in Barcelona this fall?

Streaming Obsession

Over coffee, I would tell you that my latest streaming obsession is “We Crashed”, which follows the true story of the rise and fall of WeWork. Jared Leno and Anne Hathaway were both so good! We recently finished the last episode. It was a good drama made better by the fact that it was based on a true story!

Basketball fever!

Over coffee, I would tell you that I am so excited to have the Boston Celtics back in the NBA Finals. I love the buzz in the city when one of our teams is in the hunt for a championship! And it doesn’t hurt that they won game 1!

What would you tell me over coffee?

Welcome to Fit Five Friday!

Join My First 5K and More, Running With Attitude, Run Laugh Eat Pie, Runs with Pugs, and Zenaida every Friday for Fit Five Friday! Please share the link-up love by visiting and commenting on your hosts and at least two other Fit Five Friday bloggers!

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Filed Under: #FitFiveFriday, Ultimate coffee date

Week 21 – Winding Down May

May 29, 2022 by 24 Comments

MAYhem is drawing to a close. It was yet another tough week in the news…I have no words…

This week was quiet on the work front, giving me a chance to clear the decks before the new month rolls in. And, on the homefront, my high schooler finished classes and all of the end-of-year school stuff and is now prepping for exam week. It was also race week, so the workouts were fairly low-key…but the #optoutside streak (Day 60 as of today!) continued. Here’s how things played out.

Week 21 – Winding Down May

Monday — 2-mile walk, Upper Body Strength, & Stretch
Tuesday — 2-mile walk otherwise rest day
Wednesday — 3-mile run, Core & Stretch

When you match the flowers you stop for a photo, right?

Thursday — 2.5-mile walk & Yoga
Friday — 3-mile run, Core & Stretch


Saturday — 1.5-mile walk, Upper Body, Core & Stretch
Sunday — Race Day: Boston’s Run to Remember 5 Miler! Running felt really good today and I’m happy with my effort. I’ll share a recap in the coming days.

Now I’m looking forward to lazing on the deck and enjoying some family time!

How was your week? How are you spending this long weekend?

I’m linking up with Kim and Deborah for the Weekly Run Down. Join us!

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Filed Under: Boston's Run to Remember, MAYhem, Weekly Run Down

Runfessions from MAYhem

May 27, 2022 by 9 Comments

That sigh you hear is me exhaling as my MAYhem is winding down. I am so ready to kick back and enjoy the long weekend ahead! But, first, it’s the last Friday of the month which means Marcia has opened the Runfessional. And, the Fit Five Friday crew is ready to go…so let’s get started, shall we?

Runfessions from MAYhem

(This post contains affiliate links)

I runfess that for as worried as I was about all that I had on my plate for this month, things actually went pretty smoothly. Still, it feels good to put this month in the rearview mirror.

After runfessing last month that I was struggling to fit in all my workouts while running 4x’s a week, I runfess that I promptly returned to 3 days of running and I’m much happier. Perhaps I’ll add in the 4th day when I start half marathon training later this summer…but then again, maybe not.

I runfess that the sudden wave of summer weather has me shopping for a hydration vest. While I do have a Nathan Hydration Waist Pack, it only holds one bottle and I’d like to be able to carry both electrolytes and water. I’ve been reading reviews and comparing models – who knew there were so many options?!

This Nathan VaporAiress is on my short list.

Any runfessions to share? Do you have a hydration vest recommendation?

Welcome to Fit Five Friday!
Join My First 5K and More, Running With Attitude, Run Laugh Eat Pie, Runs with Pugs, and Zenaida every Friday for Fit Five Friday! Please be sure to show your hosts some love and visit some of the other bloggers in the link-up. Who’s ready for some fun?


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Click here to enter


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Filed Under: #FitFiveFriday, Runfessions