vacation |

06/29/2017
by She's Going the Distance 6 Comments

Spending Time With Mom in NC!

Monday: 7m easy 9:00/pace
Tuesday: 2 x 3 @ 95#, 105# Push Jerks, 4 x 12 @ 115# Back Squats + 6m easy 8:36/pace
Wednesday: 6 x 6 deadlift + 5.1m easy 9:30/pace

Life is crazy busy right now. I’ve been traveling around, spending time with some very important people and making time for a few things that I’ve pushed aside, like painting and practicing piano. The blogging might be sparse these days, but it’s all for making room for creativity and recovery. My workouts are sort of killing me right now even though i’m not training for anything specific, other than getting strong and running long of course! I kinda love it, kinda hate it, probably gonna ramble on a future blog about it 😉

My trip out to Asheville, NC was short, sweet and needed! I wanted to hike and visit a few breweries while in town. My mom (Linda) and I stopped first thing at Sierra Nevada! Travel tip: if you fly into Asheville, Sierra Nevada Brewery is less than a 5 minute drive away!

And it’s huge…

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with tons of beers on tap…

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great food! (Below is Pigs Cheek Flatbread and Veggie Flatbread)

I flew in later in the evening, so after our dinner and beer tasting we pretty much got settled in mom’s apartment and went to sleep. So did her little girl Maggie, who looks like an Ewok.

She’s a sweetheart and we took her for walks around her usual lake loop in Black Mountain, NC the next morning before heading out for, what else? Coffee…

The Dripolator has been a long time favorite since I was in 8th grade! I lived in Black Mountain for a short period of time, but my mom and sister have lived there longer so i visited often. It’s still and always will be one of my favorite places to trek back to.

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I ordered a Cubano (frothed half n half, sugar & sea salt). I’ve started adding sea salt to my coffee on a regular basis when it’s available, it’s pretty incredible. And for the amount of water loss I’ve had “heat training” this summer, i can use the extra sodium right? lol

Mom caught me pouring a 2nd cup of coffee that morning. Need to hire her to full time to blog, cause I need to start double fisting java.

Is it me or is it kinda funny to do selfies with your parents?

Finally we were caffeinated enough to drive north on the Blue Ridge Parkway and find some hiking and views to take pictures of…

My mom pointed out how our hands are doing the same thing… apples don’t fall far.

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And we drove up to Mount Mitchell, took pictures at the summit then found a nearby trail to hike. It was such a beautiful day!

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and onto the hike!

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It’s alright here I guess… File_000 (440)

Next up we went to downtown Asheville and stopped at Lexington Glassworks. It’s an amazing glass blowing studio where you can watch the artists work and they’ll talk about the process to the crowd. There were a ton of cool things for sale….and they had a bar serving beer while you hang out. <–that seemed dangerous but the space is huge, so i guess the chances that you’ll bump into stuff and have to buy it is slim? Maybe? Haha

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Then we were onto Wicked Weed Brewery!

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I ordered a cucumber beer, super refreshing on a warm day after hiking. Travel Tip: Wicked Weed does not do sampler flights on weekends! File_000 (491)

But I was happy with the beer and the chocolate porter I got for dessert!

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Lunch was the bison buger & sweet potato fries. Literally my favorite burger/fry combo. File_000 (493)

We spent lots of time shopping, checking out local art, drinking coffee, and walking the dog around the lake…

no idea what this was, but it’s across the street from Wicked Weed and I loved the art.

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The next morning we headed to Oskar Blues Brewery, which had a huge outdoor patio to listen to live music, play corn hole (or bags depending on what part of the country you’re from), a food truck and an outdoor bar. We spent a few hours here because the weather was incredible and apparently I need to be outside a minimum of 2-5 hours a day haha.

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Stairway to Beer Heaven. File_000 (512)

We had the salmon sandwich and fries- soooo good! File_000 (514) File_000 (499) File_000 (509)

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We did so much walking I didn’t even feel the need to go for a run or workout. Ok, i mean, i squeezed in all my workouts in before I left but you know what I mean. I love being active while on vacation!

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Asheville was so much fun and hanging out with my mom was perfect. I can’t wait to go back and hit up some more breweries and hikes!

Last Week

Monday: 6m easy 8:32/pace
Tuesday: 7m intervals 10 x 400s (6:15p)
Wednesday: Crossfit, 5m easy 9:25/pace
Thursday: 10m long 9:36/pace
Friday: 1.5hr conditioning
Saturday: 1 hr upper body (Bench press)
Sunday: Rest/ 3m easy walk

Total Miles: 28

What’s your favorite repeat getaway city?

Summer vacation plans?

07/06/2016
by She's Going the Distance 12 Comments

In 48 Hours a Lotta Life Happened.

Monday: Rest

Tuesday: 6m easy 8:40/pace

Wednesday: 8m tempo (2m warm up, 5 @ 7:30/pace, 1m cooldown), 45 min upper body

July 4th weekend were spent in Chicago for a birthday and a wedding. Friday morning I loaded up a few bags & LE and drove to the midwest! I made it in early enough to grab hotdogs & fries and head to a local NWI (northwest Indiana) fireworks show #Merica. Also just because I have to say it, the midwest does fireworks right. Best show i’ve seen in years. DC you need to step up your game, it’s quite embarrassing being the nation’s capital.

Saturday morning started with an easy eight mile run. I was so thankful this was a cutback week. I’m finally feeling these 40+ weeks! My best friend Marie (she’s been on the blog a few times before) was due with her first baby boy on July 4th. She invited me to her last ultrasound that morning. I missed so much of her pregnancy so being there at the last appointment felt very special.

Everything seemed like it was going well, we were discussing brunch and catching up on life. The doctor stepped in the room and let us know Marie’s amniotic fluid was extremely low so they had to move her into labor & delivery. I think the doctor’s exact words were, “We’re going to get things moving along.” Which made us both a little confused. Marie needed to hear exactly what was going on. The doctor clarified that she was about to be induced!

I hung out with her while she made calls and facetimed her family. My sis-in-law Trish came up to the hospital to bring food and keep us company for a few hours. Marie’s mom made it up to the hospital soon after and I felt better about going to the wedding. Induction takes a while and the doctor was confident she wouldn’t have the baby until the next day.

I rushed home to change for the wedding and headed to Chicago!

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The venue was at City View Loft and was so pretty! We had a blast catching up with family and the bride and groom looked amazing!

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The weekend just kept rolling on… the next morning at 9:00am Marie had her baby and little Philip entered out world!

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I made a quick stop to the hospital to drop of gifts and meet little Phil then took off to the cottage for Josh Raycroft’s 30th birthday and 4th of July festivities!

Josh on the left

Pro compression socks for all sports! (or recovery from wearing heels all night!)

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The next day I turned around and drove back home. That was a FAST weekend!

Last Week

Monday: 35min legs (deadlifts, kb swings, front squats, lunges)

Tuesday: 7.5m easy 9:48/pace

Wednesday: 10m easy 8:55/pace, 20 min shoulders/core

Thursday: 6m easy 9:23/pace

Friday: Rest

Saturday: 8.6m easy 8:51/pace

Sunday: Rest

Total Miles: 32.1 (cutback!)

Have you had a day or weekend with several life events?

06/03/2016
by She's Going the Distance 10 Comments

One Mile Up: Colorado Pt 2!

Wednesday: 7.1m easy 9:00/pace

Thursday: 20 min yoga, 1.5m walk

Friday: Rest

This is a freaking cool city. If you’ve never visited, bump it up on the list. Our first day started with one of the best lattes i’ve ever had in my life at Mercantile Dining and Provisions.

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We finally had the weather we craved– 80 and sunny for the rest of the trip! Perfect for exploring Denver. We got to see a lot by using city bikes. We cruised along the river, saw parks, the Broncos stadium and a very active community. Lots of runners, walkers, cyclists & people just out reading books in the warm weather. It made my heart very happy.

And when we got thirsty from the heat and the exhausting ride (insert tons of sarcasm) we stopped for a beer of course! 😉

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Joe & me at Denver Beer Co.

The next morning I got myself up early and snuck out for a few morning miles (4 very easy ones to be exact). I wanted more than anything to see the “One Mile Above Sea Level” stairs at the capitol building. As a runner, I felt it was a necessary part of the trip! I got there and the building was beautiful, especially with the sun was just starting to peek out.

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and here are a few fun graffiti art pieces I saw while heading back toward the hotel…

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James Macpherson is that you?

We explored City Park and then headed to the free Jazz fest that was happening…

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Jazz fest was a great place to kill time before heading to the airport to get back to DC.

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And a picture of the Rockies for good luck. #takenwithiphone6

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Enjoy the weekend! Who’s racing??

Anyone doing Zooma?

06/01/2016
by She's Going the Distance 2 Comments

Coulter Lake Guest Ranch! Colorado Pt. 1

Monday: 5.5m easy 8:34/pace

Tuesday: 6.2m tempo (2m warm up, 3m @ 7:08/pace, 1m cool down)

I’m dividing the Colorado post into 2 parts, the outdoorsy dude ranch part & the Denver city part. This trip was a gift from my favorite family. They truly consider me their adopted daughter and I will always think of them as family. The more families I have the better! More trips, more Thanksgiving’s & Christmases, more love and support!

I was beyond excited for a week away from the east coast and ready to embrace ranch life in the Rockies.

Coulter Lake Guest Ranch sits near Rifle, CO and about 40 minutes of dirt road up in the mountains at 8,400ft elevation. Yes, we all felt the altitude. No one was sick from it, just a lot of people feeling out of shape when we climbed anything with an incline.

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The gorgeous drive up ❤

The ranch was beautiful! There are 3 guest cabins which were very simple with beds, a couch, fireplace and bathroom. They can have up to 30 guests at a time, but we lucked out and were the only family staying that week!

The main lodge had huge tables where we spent most of the time when the rain came. The first few days entailed a lot of off and on rain and it was pretty cold. It even hailed a couple times. I wished I packed a few more sweatshirts by the 2nd day. If it looks like I’m wearing the same clothes over and over it’s because I am.

The entrance to Coulter Lake- the horse barn!

Cloudy day – no filter and still beautiful!

The ranch is known for the horseback riding. We rode three times, and with each ride our horses got to know us better and the weather continually improved. I don’t think any of us had ridden horses since we were kids, so this was a learning experience all over again. My horse was Jake. He was pretty cool. File_000 (174)

This is all of us on the 2nd ride of the week:

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giving the horses a break

We got on the lake a few times for canoeing and spotted a bald eagle on several occasions!

eagle is flying in the center of this pic!

It felt great to be away from home and out of the gym. I need more of these trips in my life.

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Once it stopped raining and warmed up we were able to hike on trails right behind our cabins and I actually fit in a quick run. This vacation was a great time to ease off running a bit and enjoy time with friends.

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This might be my favorite picture of the trail…so perfect, so Disney-esque

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On the last day we finished a 1,000 piece puzzle we started because of the rain…Also we used it as a sort of punishment when you lost a card or dice game. When you were “out” you had to go puzzle. 🙂

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We were taught how to throw a lasso. I wasn’t very good at it, but it was so much fun trying!

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The first part of our trip went by way too fast with the canoeing, fishing, the horses, the trails, shooting rifles, white water rafting, campfires, the puzzling!!!