Getting blown away!

After breakfast....

YUM! If you like cream cheese, I highly suggest the Honey and Pecan Philly flavor!

Anyways, after breakfast, I let it all settle while watching some tv and some very light cleaning, aka, there is a piece of trash and a dust bunny on the floor...now they are in the trash, I got up and got ready for a run! Once I got out there I thought I was going to blow away. The wind was crazy! At one point it blew my ear buds OUT of my ears! It settled at one point, but of course once began a small incline, the wind was blowing against me.

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I have to say that my running "mojo" as some like to call it is slowly coming back. I think for a time, a few months that is I dreaded going outside to run and so I didn't. I do live in New England where the winter was more the ridiculously cold...and snowy. But even as it warmed up, I said "this would be a beautiful day to go for a run....or take a nap!"

Short story: the nap won.

This week being April vacation for us educators...I took it as an opportunity to get things done around the house, sleep in, watch bad tv and get out for a run...well lets make the plural!
I am going to be honest and say that I do still struggle with getting my butt off the couch to go out, but its just like work (if you actually like you job) where you may not want to go, but once you get there, you are fine and ready to work! Well, same goes with running. I may not want to go, or be happy about it, but once I get the sneakers on, Pandora on, GPS on, I am out the door and feeling good!

I have been trying to make it worth my while as well. Not just to enjoy myself, build up those endorphins...but treat myself in the end! I mentioned this the other day, and I did it again today. I plan my run so that I will end at Dunkin Donuts and cool down with a -1 mile walk back to my house.
It makes the run much better knowing that, just like when you run a race and there is a medal at the end, there is an ice coffee waiting for me....or well someone to make it for me!

I mentioned Pandora, and what I love is that you can type in almost anything you want and it will make a station for it! To shake things up a bit, I decided to make a Reggae station...well it came up with Reggaeton (spelling??). It was good for the most part, not something I normally listen to, but it was upbeat and I enjoyed it.

The feeling of finishing and completing a run, of any distance should be a good feeling.

What gets you motivated to get out the door?
Have you ever "lost" your running mojo?
How did you bounce back?

-Stephanie

(Almost) Perfect Playlist!

Lets talk about music. Most runners enjoy having music playing as they run, at an acceptable and safe volume of course. Sometimes getting the right mix of songs together can be tricky. Today I felt like going to a throwback, the 90's that is, well in this case 2000. For my car ride to work I chose to listen to Nsync's "No Strings Attached" album. Yea, those were good days.

When I got home, I went straight upstairs and got changed for my run. No stopping, except maybe to pee. I got outside, strapped on my shoes and set up my running app and Pandora radio. I decided to stick with my teenage year music. I set up a Nsync radio and off I went....or so I thought...

As I began walking down the driveway, while looking at my phone instead of where I was going, I stepped on a stupid pinecone and down to the ground I went! I didn't even want to look at it. If I looked it at, I am not squeamish or anything, but I would have somehow convinced myself to go inside and clean it and then I would not have gone back out to run. So I sucked it up, brushed myself off and went on. Once I actually began running I felt fantastic! I think I ran longer than I normally do before taking a walk break! I was so proud of myself! But of course the trade off is being more tired later.

Let me get back to my post title, so my playlist, well since it is Pandora the songs are random, but set according the station I set. It was awesome! All the right stuff, it had Nsync, Backstreet Boys, TLC, Britney Spears...and what would have topped it off would be NKOTB, but it didn't come up. There were a couple slower songs I could have done without, but in general, it was fantastic! I will have to remember those for when I need to create an actual playlist for a race or something!

Along the way I passes a bunch of walkers, I gave them a smile and even a Hello.

I am still discovering different areas of town to run in. This route I have run part of before, the other half I noticed great sidewalks on when I drove down that road. It does offer great sidewalk access, side roads and it goes past two schools that have a track  that if open I could access I am sure just to add some distance if needed.

 I finished, thought I had a great running outfit on today, which I thought deserved a photo. I went inside and prepared one of my new favorite snacks, not just for after runs but with my lunch as well. A good crisp and sweet apple with Peanut Butter and a chocolate hazelnut spread (nutella or any off brand!) YUM!!

 

Do you have a favorite post-run snack?

Do you even have a snack or just water/Gatorade?

What is your favorite song to run to?

Do you use Pandora, if yes, favorite station to play?

 

-Stephanie