It’s (virtual) race week … again 😉
DC’s Stay-at-Home order was set to expire on May 15 and I was getting pretty stressed drafting my office’s return to work policies and thinking about leaving the safety of my own home to rush back onto the metro and the outside world before I felt ready or comfortable doing so. But on Wednesday, the Stay-at-Home order was extended to June 8th and I feel relived by this decision. I understand the privilege of my position, but I feel safe at home and if I’m being honest I’m also enjoying living at a slower pace, not rushing from physical place to physical place all the time. I’ve definitely been reflecting on the new normal lately and which parts of the old normal are worth rushing back to… But back to looking just at this past week. I’ve been pulling 50K+ week for a few weeks now and my legs are definitely starting to feel heavy and tired. Nonetheless, I ran 57.2km / 35.5 miles this week, including 29.4km/18.26 miles on Saturday for the Marine Corps Devil Dog Double challenge. Here’s how it went:
MONDAY
I’m doing this November Project DC QuaranTEAM challenge (I’m #TeamDazzo) so I did a bunch of squats, sit ups and pull ups (no burpees… but I’ll do some next week!). Every Monday for the next four weeks we’ll be competing in randomly assigned teams to see who can collectively log in the most reps of all 4 exercises. I figured it was something to do (besides running). I also ran a mile because I guess I’m doing a May running streak now (I just need to find ways to keep myself motivated at this point!)
TUESDAY
I also signed up for my friend Tammy’s QuaRUNtine 30 minute run challenge. Basically she provides a training plan and some online group sessions and we all see how much progress we can make over 4 weeks when running for 30 minutes. I was supposed to do my baseline run on Sunday or Monday but I didn’t so I did it Tuesday (30 minutes = 5.19km/3.23 miles.) Also, Tuesday marked the return of Pacers’ monthly Shake Shack #shacktrackandfield runs so I got a free Cherry Blossom shake at the Chinatown Shake Shack. Not as much fun all by yourself though 😉
WEDNESDAY
I was going to have Corey pick me up but work was super busy and I didn’t get to go outside all day and the weather was just beautiful so I ended up running 7.63km/4.74 miles to Crystal City. Corey met me at Gravelly Point and then we headed to the Pentagon City Shake Shack because he hadn’t gotten his free shake yet.
THURSDAY
The run back to DC Thursday morning was SO much more pleasant than the run Wednesday night. The Mount Vernon Trail is just a lot less busy at that time so I had a lovely 8.30km/5.16 miles run back home. In the evening, I took Tammy’s foam rolling zoom workout, which wasn’t a part of the QuaRUNteam challenge she’s doing but part of a weekly zoom chat series she’s been doing for Pacers on Thursdays. As I mentioned in the intro, my legs had been feeling really heavy so I needed someone to force me stretch and foam roll and Tammy provided just that!
FRIDAY
I did just a little bit more than my daily mile (1.77km/1.1 miles) delivering banana bread to friends in the neighbourhood.
SATURDAY
So Saturday was rough. I’m too slow of a runner to actually complete the Marine Corps’ Devil Dog Double in normal time (you have to run the Semperf5ive in less than 52 minutes before running the Historic Half marathon basically immediately after crossing the finish line of the 5 miler) but I thought I might be able to do it virtually. So after the race was canceled, like all of the races, I signed up. Of course, this weekend was hot AF so I got up at 6AM to do the 5 miler and thought I was gonna die. I did, however, run 8km/5 miles in 50.48 minutes and I’m pretty proud of that.
After the 5 miler, I took a 20 minute break at home, which I wouldn’t have been able to in real race conditions. I went to the bathroom. Changed from a t-shirt to a tank top. Had a little coffee and some banana bread that my friend Anna had dropped off. Picked up my hydration pack. It was hard getting back out. But I figured, I got up at 6AM. I might as well get this over with. So I headed out to run a half marathon and it was hard and it was hot. I made it home after 15 km for another quick bathroom break and then I got back out and it was even hotter but I. got. it. done. Hopefully next year I’ll be able to do the real race though. Virtual races REALLY are not doing it for me.
SUNDAY
Just did my daily mile (two actually). I’m going to be taking it easy next week (it’s supposed to rain every day anyway) and I’m kinda looking forward to that!
What I’m reading/watching/listening to: I finished two books this week: The Right Swipe by Alisha Rai (cute, rom-com type book) and Oona Out Of Order by Margarita Montimore. Both were light, easy reads which is kinda just what I needed right now.
My friend Courtney of Eat Pray Run wrote this great article about her experience as a black long distance runner in Women’s Running. It definitely got me thinking about how white my running groups and what we could do to change that. I don’t have any answers, obviously, but the article challenged some of my perceptions and I hope you’ll read it too.
What I’m eating/drinking: I’ve been on a green onion pancakes kick. I’ve been using this recipe for Korean scallion pancakes and made it a few times last week. I love scallions.
I ate “out” quite a bit last week. On Monday I treated myself to sushi from Nama DC after seeing my friend Madalene post about her dinner in her instragam stories (she’s a great gal to follow by the way!) I paired it with a fabulous little Lafken Riesling from Chile that was a part of Grand Cata’s wine club picks for this month.
After a three month trial, I’m so glad I chose to renew my membership through September. I love how Grand Cata helps me broaden my horizons beyond French wines. I also picked up lunch at the Columbia Room on Thursday. They’re currently offering a “Get a Hero Be a Hero” sandwich pop up and for every sandwich sold, one is donated to DC-area hospital workers and first responders.
I got the club sub and loved it. Thinking I’ll go back this week for the Mort & Mozz. I also couldn’t resist ordering the granchio appetizer (umbo lump crab crepe cake, gruyere, chives ) from Centrolina DC on Friday.
I also got a Sicilian rosé to go with it, duck breast for a later diner and farm eggs. The photo app at City Center was too good to pass too 😉
What I’m looking forward to on week ?: So I did a thing and impulse bought an inflatable Stand Up Paddleboard.
I’m looking forward to taking it out for swim over the 3-day weekend. Otherwise, like I said, I’m going to be taking a bit of a much needed break from running this week. I’ll still do my daily miles and some longer runs but at an easy pace and a much shorter long run Saturday. And I’m also going to be looking for new challenges I can take on… they do really help me to stay motivated and right now I really need something…
Back to linking with Kim of Running On The Fly and Deborah of Confessions of a Mother Runner for their weekly wrap-up. Check out everyone’s posts and join the community if you’re blogging about your fitness journey too!!