I ran a bunch more than usual, made beer, and got to hang with a good friend.

I ran 30 miles last week! (And cycled 4 on Tuesday) which is the most I've run in one week since January. (And before that was quite abysmal in the mileage department running wise) I really enjoyed doing 2 mid distance runs back to back (Saturday and Sunday) - I wasn't planning it but felt great especially since Sunday's workout was 2x 2.5 miles at 7:30 pace.


Cb was super cute like always. He misses his daddy right now who is on a business trip.


I took some photos of the Soldier Field 10 while out for my Saturday morning 8 miler. It was nice seeing some friends I hadn't seen in a while running the course. It was a fabulous day for a race!


If this summer repeats Saturday's weather, I'd be a super happy camper. Post run I met Vicky and her dad for brunch at Eleven diner.


Post brunch I brewed beer again. This will be a single hop IPA made with "Warrior" hops. I recently just bottled this beer's sister- the same recipe IPA but made with a different hop- "cluster." It will be interesting to compare these beers and taste the differences.


Post beer making I met up with Vicky and her dad again for beers at Villains!! It had just reopened on Friday and I was dying to go- and luckily they were thirsty for some beer. I can't wait to return with L when he gets back from Brasil. Fun fact: we ran into one of the owners at the Copenhagen Beer Celebration a few weeks ago. We are so happy they reopened!


On Monday CB took me for a walk in Grant Park. He insisted I take photos of him with these awful stinky flowers that caused me to start sneezing.


On a less happy note, I recently read this story in the Rio Times. A doctor was biking on the Lagoon in Rio and was robbed. He was stabbed and died of his injuries. The crime in Rio (and Brasil) is no joke. This story is just heartbreaking and gives me chills because we ran around the lagoon in Rio while we were there in November and I thought it was "safe" although L was quick to remind me no where in Brasil is truly safe.

Running around the Lagoa in November.

On a happier note, CB and I ran before work on Tuesday. I love seeing him so happy (and consequently tired)
I'm enjoying running more (in the heat!!!!) and can't wait for my half marathon and 5k over the next few months.

--Xaar

Random Friday Word Vomit aka Popovers are awesome. {3}

Last week was super fun. I got to go to the Cubs game with my coworkers. I love work sponsored field trips. CB was totes jelly he couldn't go, but he still wanted to show his support.


I made popovers for the first time last weekend. They are kind of similar to Yorkshire pudding- and super easy to make. They were amazing fresh out of the oven with butter and jam.


Cb went on a few runs. I'm making up for not taking him out much when the weather was crappy cold.


Last Thursday, L and I went to the Chicago Craft Beer week event: Beer Under Glass at the Garfield Conservatory. While it rained a little we still had an amazing time talking to Brewers and sampling local beers in a beautiful location. I had wanted to go for a while but the timing never worked out. I was really happy we were able to go this year.


On Sunday I ran 8 miles. It was foggy and cool out, but very humid. I love running outside and not having to wear 10 layers.


We went to another CCBW event- Goose Island Sunday Funday! I had such a fun time last year that it was a no brainer to get tickets this year. But- I was mildly disappointed in the event. It just seemed too crowded. Watching the Brewers play dodgeball against each other was fun, but waiting in line for a very small taster of BCS variants was not. Regardless it was a good way to spend time with friends.


I signed up for 2 races! I'm no longer half assing my "training" and have a much more focused plan. I'm excited to run the Original 5k again- and finally run a 5k without flying first or drinking/eating all the things. I also signed up for the Rock n Roll Chicago half- because I love running in the heat. But seriously, I love the course which runs through the city and not the lakefront. And I haven't run a half marathon in 2+ years now. Crazy. PRs are gonna fall!


CB and I ran outside before work this week and it was so nice. Seeing him happy on our runs melts my heart.


This weekend I look forward to some longer runs and breaking 30 miles in a week... Finally!!!

I also will brew more beer- another IPA and make biscuits for the Cb dog. Can't wait for a nice chill weekend.

Random Friday Word Vomit aka "There is No Jet Lag" {1}

Random Friday Word Vomit.

I bought a trench coat! It's my first trench ever and I wanted something a bit non traditional and fell in love with this one from Betsey Johnson.
I also bought a bunch of clothes recently (and consequently purged my closet). I just can't bring myself to wear items that don't fit right or are past their prime. I'm 30+ years old now. Time to start dressing in a way that coincides with my personality and tastes more. Not that I dressed sloppy before, but I want to dress better and live up to my sorority nick name "tres chic." Ha ha ha

I stuck with a white/green/black theme so that everything can be worn together. Also, this makes packing for my trip to Paris and Copenhagen really easy because I can re-wear the pieces for different looks which equals less space in my carry on (and more room for shit to buy and bring home!)

When I went to Europe in 2002 for 16 days, I had a huge 90lb suitcase as well as a carry on. It was so ridiculously difficult to get around with it. I've since grown up, become travel smart and can pack a carry on with extra space(!) for trips of 10 days. (And this makes for a much more enjoyable trip!)

And to comment a little further on my traveler > tourist philosophy- I'm not purely hating on people who go places and take tours vs those who go off the beaten path. For some folks that's good enough. What I absolutely hate are the people who show no respect for other cultures- either by expecting everything to be the same as 'Murica (because Country X is not USA, DUH) or by acting rude towards the locals by raising their voices (thinking speaking louder in English will get them to understand?) this is a sore spot for me because when I lived in Mexico and cruise ship Tuesday/Thursday came along so did a bunch of douchey Americans dressed in wife beaters who would treat the employees at our favorite coffee shop like garbage. Speaking louder in a language people don't understand won't get them to understand what you want. It will never work. There's other more subtle ways to communicate universally with people who don't speak your language and still be able to be understood. {steps off soapbox}

I was looking at the tap list for CBC and saw Barrel Aged Vanilla Bean Dark Lord will be offered. Yesssssss. Between that and like 100 other beers I want to sample (of all different styles from the best breweries in the world) my thirst will be quenched and I will be very happy and bliznitzed.

CB has been extra adorable and precious lately. He must have been missing his daddy who has been on business trip after business trip lately. CB is usually not very affectionate, but he has been needy for affection lately.

Fluffy tail = Super fresh CB!

My big red fox got a bath yesterday morning. I was exhausted by the time I was done bathing him, but he seemed to be fired up and wanted to play. Unfortunately I had to go to work. Poor guy.

Next up: I need to pack for the trip. It's never too early! But honestly, I'd rather go with an empty suitcase and buy everything in Paris and Copenhagen because that would be fun, but not so good for my bank account. Womp.

I also need to figure out how to keep myself entertained for 9 hours on the flight. Preferably I'd like to pass out and wake up in Paris, but sleeping on planes even with Zzzzzzquil doesn't work we for me. The motto for this trip is "there is no jet lag." I'm planning on getting up ridiculously early the day of the flight so by the time we finally board I'll be tired. (But full of adrenaline because I'm traveling and going to PARIS!!) SQUEEEEEEEEEE!

There is no jet lag.

Week 10 of ?? Sub 20 5k training AKA: Friends > Running

Another "meh" training week. Although I don't really care because in the grand scheme of things one off week won't impact me much. Plus, I had a lot of fun this weekend and wouldn't trade spending time with friends for a run.


Monday: rest

Tuesday: 5 mile progressive run, 5 miles cycle

Wednesday: 4 miles on the lakefront with my boys

Thursday: rest

Friday: rest

Saturday: 10.3 miles total. AM: 7 miles containing 1x 1 mile @ 6:22, 2x800's @ 6:07, 4x 400's @ 5:52. Felt really good. Followed by MRC #3 an easy 3.3 miles.

Sunday: Rest.

24 miles total for 3 hours.

I felt crappy Thursday and Friday and decided not to prolong the crap feeling by running.

Saturday morning I did a nice little speed sesh and felt fab. My "cool down" was running 3.3 miles with the Mikkeller Running Club a few hours later.

I'm itching to run a 5k and see where I'm at but nothing is really looking good until May. I want low hanging fruit- basically something easy to get to, a flat fast course, and good weather. The Race that's good for life is on my radar and I'll have to decide very soon if I'll run it this weekend. (I just don't want to ride the el for 45 min to get there!!)  I've heard really good things about it and the course looks great- minimal turns, basically one big loop. Decisions decisions.

Cb celebrated Easter earlier this week with Fido.



Wednesday I got to run on the lakefront with my boys. It was so gorgeous out!


Saturday was our 3rd Mikkeller Running Club run out of the Northdown. Despite it being Easter weekend, we still had a great turnout! (More on that in another post)


Post MRC we had a bottle share with friends. I don't think I've stayed up that late in a long time. But it was a ton of fun!


Sunday we went to another friend's house for Easter/ goodbye party for a friend L has known for over 10 years who is moving back to Croatia. We had a blast hanging out with him and his friends, drinking beer and eating really delicious foods.


Looking forward:

Must decide today or tomorrow if I'll register for the 5k this weekend.

Need to continue reading my Paris and Copenhagen books to see if there's anything we really want to see while there. Since we aren't into touristy stuff, I'm mainly looking for restaurants and cool places to walk around.

I really hope to run outside with CB dog again this week. His happy face melts my heart.

Shamrock Shuffle "to do" list aka my "cat" does cat things.

The Shamrock Shuffle is this Sunday! Yippee another race!! This will be my 4th shuffle- (2011-2013) only missing last year's Shuffle because I ran a marathon in Tennessee.

With great anticipation for my 2nd race back from the great Cankle (peroneal Tendinosis) disaster of 2014, I am excited and anxious and pumped to hit the roads and push my limits again. Also, I must maintain my PR streak in this race.

My "to do" list includes:

•What to wear (prob the most important thing)

•What music to listen to, if any

•Pacing strategy

•Where to get brunch afterwards

For "what to wear" I know I'll wear my Mikkeller Running Club shirt with arm warmers. The forecast is looking to be around 35 deg with 20mph winds. (And I'm hoping the rain/snowy stuff stays away!)

But now comes the most important aspect of race day wear: bottoms.

Do I go with my trusty Nike Pro booty shorts?

*Due to the cold I am leaning against it. BUT I can check a bag and just deal with the freezing temps and have warm legs waiting for me. I don't mind my legs being cold, but if my neck is exposed I freeze.

Or my Track n Field crazy leggings?
*These are pretty thick compared to the Nike legs. I've only worn them once for our MRC 3 miler. I'm leaning against them because they are thicker and a bit more snug.

Or my Nike leggings?
I've worn these for 2 5ks when it was around the same predicted temperature (low 30's) and I felt good. They aren't too thick so I don't get over heated too quickly. Leaning towards these because I'll have more opportunities to wear my booty shorts as the temps increase.

Music:

In my last 5k I didn't run with music and I didn't miss it at all. BUT I'm wondering what would happen if I put "Can't Hold Us" on repeat with some "Lose Yourself" mixed in. Would it give me an extra pep in my step??

Pacing:

If I plug my recent 5k 21:13 into the McMillian calculator it predicts my 8k time to be 34:58. (Avg 7:02) if I plug 20:30 Into the calc (a time I think is conservatively achievable at my current level of fitness because the 5k was not under optimal conditions) I get a predicted finish of 33:47 (avg 6:48).

I feel 34 would be a good number to shoot for, but pacing will be my biggest issue because the garmin won't be accurate in the city & mainly because I haven't been able to practice pacing myself to lock down what a certain pace feels like. The cold will also negatively affect me. I'm still relatively new at this shorter distance stuff and it's hard to know if I'm going out too fast so early in a race like this. I'll just shoot for low 7's and try to negative split the shit out of this race.

My "cat" decided to do cat things and check out what I was doing because that's what he does. He knows no boundaries.

Brunch:

I've thought of a few places but haven't decided on one specific place yet. But I know that first beer post race will taste sweet because of the PR I will run and because I am beyond the injury! And post race brunch with friends is always fun.
2011 Shamrock Shuffle 42:08, 2012 Shamrock Shuffle 39:58, 2013 Shamrock Shuffle  36:59 (PR)

It was fun to go back and see my Shamrock Wear "through the years." Sparkle skirts the last 2 years... My running "style" has come a long way since 2011! I am a firm believer in "if you look good, you feel good, and run faster."

I'm excited for the Frozen Shuffle this weekend, mainly because I'd be kicking myself if I didn't run it. It's one of the "low hanging fruit" races of Chicago for me because I can walk to the start in 10 minutes. Doesn't get any easier than that! Although I do hate the crowds... It will be fun I keep telling myself!

Week 8 of ?? Sub 20 5k training

This week was a bit meh. I was happy to run in Vancouver one last time- with L! But then had to fly home and go to work the next morning for all day meetings!! Always super fun. I just couldn't shake the exhausted no energy feeling Thursday- so figured a rest day was in order. Friday I was even more tired and stuffy so had to take off one more day. It's just not worth it to me to over do it while sick and prolong it.

Monday: 5 miles along the Vancouver Seawall with L.

Tuesday: Rest

Wednesday: 5 miles. Some progressive.

Thursday: REST aka no energy

Friday: REST aka stuffy head no energy

Saturday: 10 total: 4 am miles with CB, 6 miles speedwork pm. 2x 1.5 miles at 6:22, 6:10 respectively.

Sunday: 5 miles


Saturday I went for a "test" run with CB and felt much better so I figured a nice speed sesh was in order. It felt more difficult than it should have, but I got both sets of 1.5 miles done. I finished out the week with an easy 5/recovery run to help rid my quads of the soreness from the 2x1.5's. The first half mile my legs were like lead and super sore- but by the 2nd mile I was feeling better. My legs are still a bit sore, which was to be expected.


The sunrise on Wednesday was amazing!


I missed my little puppy bear.


One of the "outtakes" from our run on Saturday. I like taking photos with CB on our runs, because he's so stinking happy and cute, but also because I know the days for us to run are getting more limited as he ages and I want to document these memories.


I also opened another bottle of the black berry stout I had made. The first tasting was lackluster a few weeks ago- but I left more bottles to condition for additional time. The difference between 1.5 and 3+ weeks was huge! The beer today had more carbonation and flavor (more caramel/tartness) and was definitely more drinkable than the one I opened after 1.5 weeks of conditioning. I definitely respect beer a lot more now that I'm beginning to realize everything that goes into producing beer.

I also made more beer. I basically made the same stout as the blackberry stout, But will put coffee in it instead. Then I'm done with stouts, and will move onto a different style which is more spring appropriate. Maybe Gose or pale ale?

This week I'm looking forward to the Shamrock Shuffle... My 4th! Yay.

Week 7 of ?? Sub 20 5k training

The highlight of this week was going to Vancouver for vacation. A by product of that was being able to run The St Patrick's 5k.

Monday: 4 miles on the lakefront with CB

Tuesday: 6 miles avg 7:07. 1 mile WU w/ strides..... 1 mile @ 6:22, half mile recovery, 2x 800's @ 6:10 (quarter mile recovery) 4x 400's @ 6:00, last @ 5:52, (200 recovery) CD. Felt springy & light.

Wednesday: 4 miles recovery + 4 cycle miles

Thursday: 3 miles + strides

Friday: REST aka Be in a plane for 5 hours aka walk all over Vancouver

Saturday: St Patrick's 5k {vancouver} 21:13 PR!!

Sunday: 7.9 miles along the sea wall


Highlights:
Definitely running outside with CB after work on Monday. It was so freaking gorgeous outside.


I was happy to hit some fantastic paces in my last speed sesh before the 5k. This got me thinking that a 5k PR was imminent- by how much I wasn't sure. I knew the race would have hills, but more important, I knew I'd feel like shit because of the flight. (Historical data)

I was really happy to hit a 17 second PR in the race. Like super happy considering everything. I know that if I don't fly across the country and go out drinking the night before that I could easily run {conservatively} 30-45 seconds faster- especially on a flat course.

I'll have to wait a few more weeks to test out a 5k in "perfect" conditions because I'm running the Shamrock Shuffle 8k in less than 2 weeks. I know my PR there will fall too.


I thought it was really cool the race sold the shirts separate from the entries. I haven't seen this done in Chicago. I think registration was around $20 for the race. The shirt was $20 also. I just wanted the shirt as a memento (before I realized I would get a cool beer glass!) I like the idea of separate costs for the shirt and bib.


Cb was happy to see Fido for the first time in 2015!


He was also happy to go on some more walks this week. Yay no more winter, yay!

This week I'm looking forward to getting back into a solid eating/running routine and upping my mileage little by little as the weather will allow me. I want to do 3-4 more speed sessions between now and next week before the shuffle.

Sub 20 is imminent...

-- Xaar

Week 6 of ?? Sub 20 5k Training...

This week can be summed up as "MEH." I was sweating buckets during the speedwork and didn't feel as springy as usual. Whether it was hormones or a cold type thing or a combo of both, I just wasn't feeling myself this week. I started thinking there is no way I'll be able to hit sub 6:26 a mile for 3.1 miles in a race anytime soon while doing the 1200's, BUT I quickly reminded myself I was feeling off and this is not how I usually feel. Sure, the sub 20 5k won't be easy, but it shoudn't feel like a complete struggle whenever it happens.

Monday: REST

Tuesday: 7 miles, 53:20. "Some slow, some fast" 3  miles easy, 4 miles @ 7:18, 7:13, 7:13, 7:08

Wednesday: 11 miles cycle

Thursday: 6 Miles, 42:45. "4 x 1200's" 2 mile WU, 4x 1200's @ 4:40 (6:15/mile)

Friday: REST

Saturday: 3 miles progressive before MRC.
                 3ish miles with Mikkeller Running Club.

Sunday: REST

19 Miles running for 2:29.05

11 Miles cycling for 45:30

30 miles total for 3:14.35

By Friday I was feeling funky at work. Saturday morning, I ran 3 miles before MRC and felt quite bad. The 3 easy miles I ran with MRC were awful. The rest of the day I napped and did not eat anything because I felt so sick. Sunday I felt much better so I met my friend Vicky for brunch. But by the time I got home the stomach issues returned and I slept the afternoon away. The bad thing is I wanted to run again on Sunday but had no energy. The "silver lining" is I'm much closer to racing weight now... I just hope to be eating normal asap because my first 5k is this weekend!

I got some cool Toms with a Foxy "CB" print on them.
I got a lot of kisses post 1200's this week. CB is always happy to see me post workout. I'm just a huge salt lick to him...
We tried my blackberry stout this weekend. It was alright, but not quite as good as I thought it would be. I believe that it needs to bottle condition for a bit longer. This bottle was opened after 1.5 weeks of conditioning- We will try another bottle after 3 weeks and hopefully it will taste better. With this being my 2nd batch of all grain beer, I am constantly trying to improve and understand the process better. I'm excited for my next batches as my knowledge grows. I know CB is happy when I make beer because he gets biscuits.
Sunday CB curled up next to me while I took a long nap after brunch. I think he knew I wasn't feeling well and just wanted me to feel better and take him for a walk. Sorry buddy, not today. But hopefully this week we can go for a run or walk together.
Looking forward:

• I hope this stomach bug ends quick and doesn't impact me much more than the 2.5 days it already has caused havoc.

• The forecast for my 5k so far is complete crap. low 40's and rain. I need to figure out what to wear for it, especially if the forecast doesn't change by Thursday. I know i'll wear my Mikkeller Running Club shirt, but might have to add arm warmers. I wanted to wear my new neon green skirt from Track n Field that I bought in Brasil, but skirts and rain = too much excess soggy material. So most likely i'll wear some booty shorts or capris. I can always wear my skirt for the Shamrock Shuffle.

• I'd like to get one more solid speed sesh in before this weekend, but that all depends on how I feel post stomach bug. I want to go into the 5K with fresh legs and really see where i'm at in this sub 20 goal.

Cheers!

-Xaar