what 20 miles looks like

Okay, so this isn't really what 20 miles looks like, but it's the only photo I have from our 20 miler on Sunday. (Plus, it was my treat after the long distance, and it's way more interesting than sneaker pics).

Chill is an amazing frozen yogurt place in Cleveland Circle right next to my old apartment, and I just can't let it go. I couldn't think of a better reward after 20 miles than coconut froyo, fresh mangos, strawberries, and bananas.

Back to the run: The poor hungover amazing CM drove over an hour to drop T and I off in Ashland, just 3 miles from the Hopkington and the start of the Boston Marathon. Ashland didn't provide us with much to look at, but it was exciting to run our whole run on the actual route, and Natick, Newton, and Wellesley are really beautiful. I was a little overdressed for the 45 degree weather and sunshine, but I'm not complaining with all of the snow we've had while training. T and I stopped at mile 13 for a water/GU break, and hit the hills hard at mile 15 when we turned onto Commonwealth Ave. We stopped again for water outside of Hearbreak Hill Running Company. I'm dying to buy some of their gear, and they're always so great about putting out water and cups for runners.

It turned out to only be 19 miles when we finally reached Cleveland Circle, so as much as we dreaded it, we took a lap around the reservoir to make it a full 20 miles. It was definitely tough, but it feels amazing to finally get that last long run out of the way. We have a couple more weeks of tapering (a 13 miler and a 10 miler before the big day), but we are definitely excited for it to get here!

In other news, a new favorite brussel sprout recipe (I'm hoping to incorporate more healthy recipes!):

Garlic Parmesan Roasted Brussel Sprouts

1 lb of brussel sprouts (Or I used 2 bags of pre-packaged ones from Trader Joes)

2 cloves garlic

Block of parmesan cheese

Olive oil

Sea salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 400 degrees

1. Cut sprouts in half and remove wilted outside leaves, rinse sprouts

2. Mince 2 (or more if desired) cloves of garlic

3. In a bowl, toss sprouts, minced garlic, and a generous amount of olive oil (maybe 3-5 tbl spoons)

5. Grate fresh parmesan and mix all of this together in the bowl, and season with sea salt and pepper

6. Spread on a non-stick oven safe pan, or grease a 9x1 3 glass dish

7. Roast for 40-50 minutes until outside leaves are golden brown and middle is tender

These are delicious and so easy! I can eat them by the bowl-full!

I'm back!

Don't know if that title should be quite that enthusiastic.

I'm back to the grind of school & job after a wonderful trip to sunny, beautiful, warm Florida... ugh.

Only about a month left, though, and then onto new and exciting chapters!

Florida was perfect for recharging my batteries. I made sure to get in a long run, jogs on the beach, and lots of resting and relaxation. 

Stretching/posing after 10miles.. need to get that arm straight!

The roof deck was gorgeous and the perfect spot for some stretches. This is my favorite 'bird of paradise' and 'runner's lunge' which really stretches your quad well.

Taking time to smell the flowers :) 

This was right in the middle of mile 7 for us! It was perfect. I think we were well under the speed limit.

Showing my running partner, motivator, and biggest supporter some love.

Paddleboarding! I've been dying to try this. Definitely want to rent some on the Charles this summer.

In something besides workout clothes (which I swear I didn't wear them all trip)!

Sunset on the last night. Missing Captiva already!!

vacation

This is definitely one of my life manifestos.

I love to travel and see new places, and am thrilled to be jet setting south today to Florida!

This vacation will probably be filled with lots of relaxing and adult beverages, but I promise a few long runs and pictures when I'm back!

a quarter century

A quarter century!?! holy &*^% that sounds like a long time...

As of this week, that's how long I've been alive. 

Sort of makes me want to throw up. 

Joking aside, I really can't believe I turned 25 on Monday. I think this is the age I'm going to stay at for the rest of my life, if you know what I mean. My mom and I used to talk about how when we were little girls we could never picture ourselves getting past a certain age, so we were really uncertain as to what was going to happen to us once we reached that age... (morbid, huh?)

Relax, my age was 23... and I'm still truckin' 2 years later.

In honor of the fact that I am now officially closer to 30 than 20, and definitely ripe with wisdom, I thought I would share some of my hard-learned and favorite lessons from the last 25 years:

*When you treat your body right through health and fitness, it rewards you in ways you never imagined - like giving you the ability to run marathons, climb mountains, or simply the ability to walk down the stairs in the morning.
*Always be thankful for these and all of your abilities, especially because there's millions of people out there who aren't fortunate enough to have them.
*Waterproof mascara is always a MUST, especially for the initial viewing of PS I love you (right, JNR?)
*Breakups are always going to suck. You get hurt. You hurt someone. However, they are also some of the best teachers - learn from them. Learn about yourself, how you want to be treated, how others deserve to be treated.
*Never settle.
*Education is important. Treasure it. People can steal all of your worldly possessions, but they can never take away your knowledge, beliefs, and opinions. Also remember, not all learning has to be done in the classroom or in books.
*Always. Always. Always. treasure your girlfriends. Relationships with your closest friends are different from any other. They understand you on a level that a lover can't, and their support is something that shouldn't be taken for granted. Be the kind of friend you'd want to have.
*When in doubt - eat the ice cream... Or the cupcake, or the oreo, or the MEGA STUFFED oreo. Life's too short to worry about that extra dimple on your butt. (Right VM?!).
*Listen to your mother. She is always right (as much as I hate to admit that). Don't be afraid to share things with her, it will make you closer. Besides, she was a naive/inexperienced/scared kid once, too, why not learn from her mistakes? (Kidding, Mom.)
*Stay close to your siblings (Rights, MattK?) If you want to know why, listen to the Sunscreen Song.
*Never take yourself too seriously. No one else does.
*Travel. (But don't always drink the water).

If you made it through that whole list you deserve a cookie (or a cupcake, or a MEGA stuffed oreao)

:)

heartbreak for 14

What a crazy/amazing weekend! 

It's been full of alcohol, food and running.

Unfortunately (or fortunately, depending on how you look at it), not all alcohol has been consumed. I spent the majority of yesterday and today in a special weekend class on OUI prosecution. I am fully embracing my alias - Caity Dent (see Harvey Dent - don't we look alike?) and learning all about how ADAs and Defense Attorneys deal with these charges. Can I be a lawyer now?

As far as consumption goes: I did enjoy some beverages at the Harpoon Festival celebrating the best holiday of the year - St. Patty's! I was joined by CM and the Stonehill girls and we had a wonderful time sipping, swigging, and for some of us swing dancing (SI!) It was nice to unwind a little before this busy weekend.

CM showing some love

Like I said, SI getting her swing on

In food news - CM took me to an un-be-lievable birthday dinner at Ruth's Chris Steak house last night. A weird spot to bring a vegetarian for her bday you say? Not when you can get gourmet barbecue shrimp (or scrimp as CM likes to call them), calamari, and potatoes au gratin. Feeling pretty lucky!

To cap it all off, T and I decided to do our weekly long run along the marathon course today. We set our alarm clocks for 5:30am and met in Cleveland Circle for 6am where we started the 7 miles out to Wellesley and back, including the infamous heartbreak hill. We didn't see a single runner until around 7am. Pretty proud we got a jump on it! (Or that we're a couple of crazies). It was a rough run in the beginning (those Newton hills are no joke!), but it got easier around mile 8, and we chugged our way up heartbreak at the end. It took us a little over 2 hours with a water stop at Starbucks, and we were happy to have it all done before 9am. We rewarded ourselves with a couple greasy Eagle's breakfast sangys! Can't believe we're 8 weeks into training, and can't wait get to the top of Heartbreak in just over 8 more weeks!

Wish I took more pics during the run, but here's the portion of the map we ran (starting at mile 23 in Brookline).

New Kicks and Race Recap

Thanks to some friendly motivation/challenge, my friend T and I have decided to train for the legendary Boston Marathon.

This will be my second Boston Marathon, and second as a bandit, but I promise it's all in training to one day run for a favorite charity or cause. 

We just finished up week 8 of training following a rookie marathon plan, and at the end of last week we were scheduled for a 13 miler, and I had the good fortune of running the Hyannis Half-Marathon in the pouring rain.

Yep it was freezing and soggy but it'd be a lie if I said I didn't have a great time! The route was a little hilly, but there was some great views of the ocean, and the strawberry donut at the end made it all worth while.

Not to mention the charming stay with CM at the Chatham Bars Inn the night before! For anyone who runs this race I definitely recommend checking the Inn out! It's gorgeous, and their off-season rates are much more reasonable than summer rates.

After the race we stopped at some outlets for some post race goodies, and I picked up a new (last season) pair of Nike Lunar Mariahs. (Check out this forum for some opinions on the Nike Lunar series). I personally like these better than my last pair of Nikes, because there's a little more structure to the front, and a little more arch support inside. I'll keep you posted as the training runs progress!  

The new kicks!

Finish line - a little over 2hrs in the freezing rain/wintery mix + a bathroom stop!

Mid-week training run on Fan Pier in South Boston