Easy (Read: Boring) Run + Crappy Television + Foto Friday

Oh my goodness. I was bragging up a storm all summer because I stopped watching a ton of the crappy shows that I used to watch. Then, wtf? All the other good ones started to come back on, and before I knew it, I had a "television program schedule" to adhere to. I know it's only going to get worse as more of the fall lineup starts up, but I'm already overwhelmed! Top Chef makes me an alcoholic (I like to have a glass of vino while watching it), Project Runway makes me think I'm way craftier than I really am, and I have a list of artsy projects as long as my arm to start doing. Entourage makes me mad that none of my friends are hotty celebs that let me live off their mad moolah and Weeds makes me want to start selling drugs and have a Mexican drug cartels baby.... wait. what?!? Scratch that.

I've already picked my top 3 for Top Chef, and once I watch last night's episode of Project Runway (currently chilling on the DVR) I'll probably be able to narrow down the winner to two people. I'm just THAT. GOOD. at reality television, people. It's a gift.

Ok, on to things that won't rot your brain. :) I got up and did a tedious 5 miles today. It was nothing to write home about. There was this really beautiful/eerie fog off in the distance on the trail that I was running in. Also, the river had a layer of fog rolling off of it, which I've never seen before. Otherwise it was bor-ing. I kept it slow to save the legs for manana. I did 5.05 miles in 48:46 for a pace of 9:40.

**Last night I did about 10 minutes of yoga to keep the streak (minus a day of failure) going.**

Tonight I'm mentally preparing myself for my mock half marathon tomorrow morning. WHOO!! I'm so excited. I kind of wish that the real half was tomorrow (note to self: 12 weeks is TOO LONG for a half training schedule). I'm going to wake up early to eat, and then start the run at 7:30am. I'm also using this as a dress rehearsal, although it's highly unnecessary. I'm wearing the sweet outfit in the above picture. [sidenote: do you love my new header? total props to Amanda at Run to Finish for snapping the way cool pic on our WWR adventure] It's probably my favorite running outfit ever, probably doesn't hurt that the top is my fave color ever. I'm going to practice GU-ing (totally a verb, no? or would that be adverb? I used to be so good at this stuff....) and will conveniently end up one block away from my apartment. At which point I will walk the block to cool down, hop in the ice bath, then wake up sleeping beauty to take me to my car (roughly 13.1 miles away). :)

In honor of all the calories I'll be burning tomorrow, we're going to hit up Olive Garden tonight. Never-ending pasta bowl? Don't mind if I DO! Then, I think we're going to head to the cheap theater for a movie. $3 you can't go wrong, I kind of want to do a double feature. Quick, what would be your choice: Funny People (love me some Seth Rogan), (500) Days of Summer (seriously want to make Zooey my GF), UP, Star Trek, or Bruno? I would see all 5, especially for $3. Holy crap?!?! I just realized we're having a real life date night tonight. Go us! :p

For Foto Friday, please enjoy some pics from last weekends BFFF extravaganza.

Me and the BF. Ready to Riverboat Days it up!
Me and my BFFF.
One of these days we WILL do a race together...she has the running bug, I can tell....

5 day post hiatus and 3 day run hiatus, cured.

Apparently I've been lazy.  Eh.  Oh well.  Wednesday and Thursday were both easy 3 mile runs, with nothing to write home about.  Except the AMAZING weather on Thursday, 59 degrees, no wind, no humidity.  Per.  Fec.  Tion.  I could've ran forever if I wasn't starving and wanting to rush home to hang out with Tay.  :)  Tuesday's run was done in 26:18 for an avg. pace of 8:46 and Wednesday's was actually 3.06 in 27:50 for an avg. pace of 9:06.

Edited to include this addition:  So one funny/interesting/noteworthy thing happened my easy run day 2.  On glorious cool weather day, there was a person in a lawn chair, on a street corner with their hood up over their head using their laptop.  If he/she really tracked down the wi-fi signal to the street corner, color me impressed.

Friday night we had planned to have a date night to the drive in, but the rain put the kabosh on that idea.  Instead we went out to Chevy's for drinks and dinner and then to the indoor theatre to see Angels and Demons.  It was...meh.  I've read all of Dan Brown's books, and Angels & Demons was by far my favorite.  And I really enjoyed the Da Vinci Code movie.  But I didn't think this movie was that great.  Good and glad I went, just not meeting my expectations.  I did, however, get extremely giddy over the New Moon and Harry Potter 7 movie posters.  :)

Saturday I skipped my 4 mile run.  Lame.  But I had a good reason, kind of.  I lost my contacts.  Ya.  We've tore apart my apartment, on the bf's apartment and they're nowhere.  I am blind without my spectacles/contacts but can't run with glasses b/c I'm SO SWEATY.  So I didn't run.  Sunday I skipped my long 6 mile run, but that was only due to laziness and wanting to sleep in.  And wanting to enjoy some Sunday Funday long weekend festivities.  I had it in  my head that maybe I would run Sunday night, but 5 beers later I thought otherwise.

As punishment, and so my monthly mileage wouldn't completely suffer, I decided to do an 8 mile long run today.  I haven't ran 8 miles since September (my current 5k training plans not going over 7 for a long run) so I thought it would be fun.  Um.  It wasn't, really.  I went out at 11:30am because that's the earliest I could drag myself out of bed, and it was already too warm, and I didn't eat anything before, because I'm dumb.  I'm starting to be concerned about this early morning running business since I typically opt to not eat instead of getting an upset stomach, and then just run out of steam.

There were strong winds from the south, so I had planned to run the first two miles with the wind, the middle 4 against, and last 2 with.  The wind blew.  HA.  But seriously.  It sucked.  And I was melting.  And I got sunburned.  I haven't even THOUGHT of wearing sunscreen on a run this year.  I guess it is summer now, crazy.  Some miles were good, some were sucktastic.  

1. 9:25 
2.1 ? My garmin was not restarted after an ab stretch break, so I estimated my overall time based on the pace it did record for .88 of the mile.
3. 9:35 
4. 9:47 
5. 9:52 
6. 10:04 
7. 9:32 
8. 9:02 

Total time of 1:17:42 for 9:36/mile.

One annoyance that I've noticed for my Garmin, is that it's mile splits aren't actually right.  There's been a couple of times that I'll look down at the 1.0 or 2.0 mile mark, noted the time, and one the mile timer pops up on the screen it's 2-3 seconds slower than what it actually was.  If this is consistent, it obviously evens itself out through the rest of the miles, but it's annoying.  End rant.